It's Painfully Obvious What's Going On With Ketel Marte Right Now

It's always evident when this happens.

Jun 1, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (right) with Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte in the third inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

It tends to be extremely obvious when Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte is playing with his full dose passion and love for the game of baseball. It's then that he's at his most dangerous.

And after one of the rockier starts imaginable for an All-Star hitter of his caliber, it looks like that passionate edge has surged back into every corner of what Marte is doing on the diamond.

When Marte is playing at full emotional capacity, it's evident in the little moments — like when he playfully imitated the Dodgers' team celebration following a Shohei Ohtani double in Monday night's win.

Ketel Marte (⁎˃ᴗ˂)

via itsjesslife7/IG pic.twitter.com/9p4WNCU5UN

— yu-1linda (@yu_1_linda99) June 2, 2026

It's also evident in the bigger moments — such as when Marte crushed a walk-off home run against the San Francisco Giants two weeks prior, flinging his bat and helmet aside and bathing in the thundering cheers of the Chase Field crowd.

But most of all, it shows up in the box score. Since that walk-off homer, Marte has been a near-unstoppable force. He finished May with a .295/.345/.524 monthly slash, and has inflated his season OPS from .619 to .779.

Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte playing with passion

Jun 1, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman (left) talks with Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte in the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

That's always been who Marte is. He's an emotional player, which, obviously, can also lend itself to some criticism when things may not be going as well. There have been some ups and downs for Arizona's second baseman, to be sure, but when he's hot the way he currently is, it's difficult to not simply admire what's happening on the field.

Manager Torey Lovullo sees it just as plainly as any fan watching from afar. He sees even more of Marte's personality, in fact.

"Great spot. He's in a great spot," Lovullo said of Marte. "The part of him that I get to see that others don't is that fun, loving personality. He's quirky, he's silly, but very serious at the right times, and I love that portion of him."

"When he gets a chance to show you guys that side of him, I think it's all fun for us to watch that," the manager said.

The Diamondbacks needed this from their top hitter. Arizona may be a team that wins off the back of collective efforts, rather than pure star power, but it was never a secret that the Diamondbacks needed Marte to get hot in order to do damage against the tougher teams on their schedule.

And he has. Marte is hitting the baseball hard, checking off of inopportune pitches, and playing some of his smoothest, cleanest defense at second base. With All-Star voting not far off in the distance, Marte might find himself on display at a national level sooner than later.