Ketel Marte will not be traded

On December 30, Arizona Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen suggested that a trade for Ketel Marte was unlikely. At the time, nothing was ruled out, but Hazen acknowledged that his club wouldn't let the idea of a trade linger for long.

Now it's time for the Marte saga to end. According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Marte will not be traded.

Ketel Marte will remain with the Diamondbacks, source tells @TheAthletic. He will not be traded.

– Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 9, 2026

Ketel Marte will remain with the Diamondbacks, a source tells The Athletic. He will not be traded.

This news may have a direct impact on the free agent market, which is slowing down these days.

The Boston Red Sox were among the teams most strongly linked to the DBacks' star player. The Red Stockings were also linked to a few high-profile offensive players this winter, such as Pete Alonso and Kyle Schwarber.

As these options continue to disappear, it makes Alex Bregman's return to Boston even more important. The Chicago Cubs have also been strongly linked to the third-cushion player, as have the Diamondbacks. But in the case of the latter, they probably had to get rid of Marte's contract to free up enough money for him. We can now take them out of the dance, barring a surprise.

If Bregman were to leave Massachusetts, Bo Bichette could prove to be the fallback plan, albeit one that will cost an arm and a leg. And that could have a major impact on the Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger deals.

An important domino has fallen and the market dynamic has changed. Let's hope that things will get unstuck in the next few days.

This content was created with the help of AI.