A star second baseman in his prime and on a team-friendly contract. That’s what any team is getting in Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte.
In the wake of a disappointing season that saw Arizona miss the playoffs and be sellers at the MLB trade deadline, the switch-hitting Marte could very well be the next All-Star-caliber player moved by the franchise. Any team that needs a second baseman can talk themselves into making a move for the two-time Silver Slugger this offseason, but we’re narrowing the list.
Here are the three best trade fits among playoff-caliber teams for Marte.
Ketel Marte has been an All-Star in each of the last two seasons. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
The Red Sox are close, but they need a little more oomph, and adding Marte would be a profound way to find it.
Marte, who posted 10 DRS at second base in 2024, would give Boston a surefire answer at second base (645 MLB starts) and somebody who can bounce to shortstop (256 MLB starts) or center field (160 MLB starts), when needed. The 32-year-old, who would form a stable, double-play duo with fellow veteran Trevor Story, is due just $92 million over the next five seasons and has a player option for the 2031 MLB season, an overall contract that’s one of the best values in the sport.
Marte would be a veteran star complement to a Red Sox offense that has an emerging core of young players like Roman Anthony, Romy Gonzalez and Wilyer Abreu. He can hit near the top of Boston’s lineup, generating offense for the meat of the order and having the lethal swing from both sides of the plate to do damage on his own. Marte would put the Red Sox on the same wavelength as the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees in the American League East next season even without internal growth. The Red Sox could send infielder and former first-rounder Mikey Romero, right-hander Hunter Dobbins and outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia to the Diamondbacks for Marte.
All that said, Boston may prefer to let Gonzalez or Marcelo Mayer be its everyday second baseman in 2026 with a healthy Triston Casas at first base, refraining from a move in the middle infield – though, it would be for an impact player.
Ketel Marte posted 4.4 wins above replacement across 126 regular-season games in 2025. (Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images)
How about going back to where it all began to give the team that brought Marte into the sport its first championship?
Marte, who spent the first two seasons of his MLB career in Seattle (2015-16), would be the team’s permanent answer at second base, a position that was a revolving door for the Mariners last season. This is a Seattle team that was one win away from reaching the World Series. Want somebody who thrives in the clutch? Marte was exceptional with the bat en route to the Diamondbacks winning the NL pennant in 2023, totaling two home runs and 11 RBIs while posting a .329/.380/.534 slash line in 17 postseason games.
The 32-year-old Marte would add a well-balanced hitter to a Mariners’ offense that, while third in MLB in home runs (238), was just 17th in hits (1,345) last season. Seattle could center its offer to Arizona for Marte around second baseman Cole Young and right-hander Emerson Hancock, who are each former first-round picks.
What could halt a Marte pursuit for the Mariners, though, is them potentially preferring to focus on re-signing their starting infielders (Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez) and also keep and move Jorge Polanco – who was primarily Seattle’s designated hitter last season – to second base. In that scenario, the Mariners preserve their roster depth and/or use it for a different trade.
Ketel Marte boasts a career 121 OPS+. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
Trading for Marte would be a slick move by Detroit.
Yes, Gleyber Torres just put together a respectable season for the Tigers, but Marte would be an upgrade for them at second base, specifically with the bat, and allow Detroit to spend elsewhere in free agency (maybe a third baseman?). While Detroit’s offense made strides last season, it was still just 16th in MLB in hits (1,346), 14th in on-base percentage (.316) and collectively posted a mere .207/.290/.317 slash line in the postseason. Marte would give manager A.J. Hinch a proven hitter who can swing the bat for both contact and power, adding another integral piece to the long-term puzzle.
Prior to blowing a 15.5-game lead in the AL Central to the Cleveland Guardians – granted, Detroit beat Cleveland on the road in the Wild Card Series – the Tigers looked like the best team in the AL. Their starting rotation was stellar, their bullpen held its own and their offense was a well-oiled machine. The Tigers still have the pieces to get back to being that team, but to do something with it, they need to take a swing this offseason.
Detroit could base a trade package for Marte around outfielder and 2023 No. 3 overall pick Max Clark and versatile infielder Colt Keith, among other young players.
Marte would fit with any team he’s potentially traded to. But for a Tigers’ team whose time to contend for the World Series is the present, Marte could be the piece that puts them over the top.
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