With a need to upgrade their pitching on the cheap, the Arizona Diamondbacks shopped Ketel Marte in the offseason. The Diamondbacks ultimately held onto Marte, despite interest from the Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays, and other teams.
While the two teams never came close to a deal, it was unclear what the Diamondbacks and Red Sox discussed. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe answered that mystery (H/T Jackson Roberts of Red Sox On SI).
“According to multiple league sources, the Sox were open to dealing a package headlined by Franklin Arias and either Payton Tolle or Connelly Early in exchange for Marte,” wrote Speier. “However, when Arizona sought a package led by Marcelo Mayer and one of the pitchers, the Sox declined.”
The Red Sox ultimately pivoted to first baseman Willson Contreras as their big lineup trade acquisition. The Diamondbacks, after failing to get any suitable offers, decided to keep Marte.
Marte will gain 10-and-5 rights in April, which complicates any future trade. Although at a $15.641MM salary on their 2026 payroll, the Diamondbacks are more than content to ride out another year with MLB’s top second baseman.
Why Arizona Pushed for Marcelo Mayer
It’s important to note the timing of these talks. Former Red Sox third baseman Alex Bregman was a free agent, and Nolan Arenado was still with the St. Louis Cardinals. The Diamondbacks pivoted to Arenado after ending Marte discussions.
Per Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro, the Diamondbacks were seeking a return befitting of a superstar player. Marte has been named the National League’s starting second baseman in the past two All-Star games, and three in total. Since 2023, he leads all players at his position in wRC+ (140) and fWAR (15.3).
Franklin Arias is the Red Sox’s top prospect, according to MLB.com. However, the then-19-year-old infield prospect spent most of the year with Boston’s High-A affiliate. With the Diamondbacks looking to compete, they wanted more MLB-ready pieces. Hence, the demand for Mayer.
Mayer was the third of Boston’s “Big 3” prospects to reach the majors. He filled in for Bregman during the season before suffering his own. He was selected fourth overall in the 2021 MLB Draft, two picks ahead of the Diamondbacks’ Jordan Lawlar.
Mayer scuffled a bit in his big league debut, slashing .228/.272/.402 with a 30% strikeout rate in his first 44 games. However, both the Diamondbacks and Red Sox view his ceiling very highly moving forward.
A Marte trade with Mayer included would have solved the third base issue and added needed rotation depth. The Diamondbacks asked for Early at the trade deadline discussions on Merrill Kelly, per WEEI’s Rob Bradford. Hazen settled on Kohl Drake, Mitch Bratt, and David Hagaman.
The trade would have also meant Lawlar would play every day at second. Instead, he’ll get more reps in the outfield for 2026. The recent trade of Blaze Alexander created a golden opportunity for him to earn a regular spot in the lineup.
Diamondbacks Offseason After Tabling Talks
After choosing to hold onto Marte, it’s been a relatively quiet offseason for the Diamondbacks. They added Nolan Arenado and Carlos Santana to their infield, hoping to stabilize their infield defense at the corners.
Arizona is banking on better defense helping a struggling pitching staff, and that allows them to win more games at the margins. They were 21-28 in one-run games in 2025. Had they won four of those games, they’d be enjoying a postseason trip instead of wondering when their next opportunity will be.
On the pitching side, the Diamondbacks have opted to make additions on the margins. Most of the heavy lifting was done with their two rotation moves. With a tight budget, Hazen committed $27.5 million in payroll space to bringing back Merrill Kelly and signing Michael Soroka.
The decision to hold onto Marte was a big one by Hazen. The question that remains is whether that was the right move for the team? He’s committed to Marte multiple times as the Diamondbacks’ GM, signing him to three team-friendly extensions. But there will always remain the what if, should the team have another poor pitching performance in 2026.
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