Ketel Marte Update All But Ends Red Sox Trade Hopes

The Boston Red Sox need one more infielder and unfortunately, the door to Arizona Diamondbacks All-Star Ketel Marte appears to be closed with no wiggle room.

Marte was linked to the Red Sox, among other teams, dating back to the Winter Meetings. Rumors swirled but no deal got over the finish line. Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen shut down the idea of a deal before the market shifted with Alex Bregman going to the Chicago Cubs and Ranger Suárez coming to Boston.

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With Bregman leaving, speculation picked back up about a possible deal. Unfortunately, this will not be happening, though. MLB.com Diamondbacks insider Steve Gilbert shut the idea down and firmly stated that Marte will be in Arizona in 2026.

The Red Sox will not be landing Ketel Marte

"It was sometime after the news of Alex Bregman signing with the Cubs and Boston's inking of Ranger Suárez that my inbox started filling with a similar question," Gilbert wrote. "Since the Red Sox lost out on Bregman and signed a pitcher who gives them some real rotation depth, do you think they will now circle back to the Diamondbacks and offer GM Mike Hazen a deal for Ketel Marte that he can’t refuse? As you will recall, it was just over a week ago that Hazen said that he was no longer going to listen to trade offers for Marte. He had set a deadline by asking the teams he had been engaged with to make their best offers, and after that he was no longer going to entertain any more...

"If (Mike Hazen) tells a player something -- in this case, 'You’re not getting traded' -- and then a week later trades him, why would any player in the future trust what he says? So, to answer the initial question, no. Nothing has changed, and Marte will be wearing a Diamondbacks uniform come Spring Training."

Alex Speier of the Boston Globe also reported that the door to a deal is "firmly shut." So, if you're a Red Sox fan still holding out hope for Marte, unfortunately the ship has sailed. Boston still needs to add at either second base or third base before the offseason wraps up. As of writing, the top available option in free agency at third base is Eugenio Suárez. Two guys to watch on the trade block are Nico Hoerner of the Chicago Cubs or Isaac Paredes of the Houston Astros.

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