Where Ketel Marte, Alex Bregman Stand Amid Red Sox Rumors

The Boston Red Sox's infield remains a question mark for the organization and things haven't been moving much around the league over the last few weeks.

That's somewhat typical around the holiday season. People step away from the business and you typically see a lull around the league. But this offseason has been especially slow, even before the holiday season. There are numerous free agents available that will impact teams in 2026. Not just depth pieces, but All-Star-level guys. It's a pretty safe bet that guys like Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, Cody Bellinger, and Bo Bichette will at least have shots at making All-Star teams wherever they land. The same can be said about Framber Valdez, Rangers Suarez, and others.

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There are also plenty of players who have been in trade rumors still on their current teams. For example, three-time All-Star Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Who is next for Boston?

Boston is a team that has been aggressive this offseason but clearly has work to do. The club is one bat away and has been consistently linked to Bregman and Bichette in free agency and Marte on the trade block. On Monday, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon dropped a brief update that Boston fans may not love.

"Barring a last-minute change, the Diamondbacks are expected to move on soon from their trade discussions involving All-Star second baseman Ketel Marte," Rosenthal and Sammon wrote. "General manager Mike Hazen signaled as much to MLB.com last week. Nothing has changed since then, and the team has always viewed a trade of Marte as a long shot.

"What the return of Marte would mean for the DBacks’ pursuit of Bregman is unclear. A scenario exists in which the team could carry both, but Arizona might prefer to avoid a major expenditure and invest in bullpen help and a right-handed hitting first baseman/DH instead."

So, from this update, it sounds like Marte will not be traded unless something happens at the last second. That will remove one potential infield option from the Red Sox's front office. Arizona has been linked to Bregman as well, but reports have pointed to the Diamondbacks potentially needing to trade Marte in order to free up cash to afford Bregman. But now Rosenthal is saying there's a scenario where they keep Marte and potentially land Bregman? That would be a disaster for the Red Sox. There's no other way around that.

Recently, ESPN's Buster Olney reported that the Red Sox have an "aggressive" offer on the table for Bregman. But he remains a free agent. Mix that with Rosenthal's report and the market is still nerve-wracking.

Boston can be really good in 2026, but it needs another piece. Hopefully, the club can get some sort of deal done before all of the options come off the board.

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