Arizona Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen said Tuesday that while a trade for All-Star second baseman Ketel Marte remains unlikely, a resolution is expected “shortly.”
“I haven’t figured that out yet,” Hazen told MLB.com, referring to the exact timeline for a resolution. “But this is not going to continue to linger. We need to focus on our offseason. Again, my instinct was that all this time [a trade of Marte] That wouldn’t happen, and I think it seems likely that it would and we want to focus on other things that we need to do. »
Marte has been linked to a number of teams this offseason, and a potential deal would allow Arizona to address a stated need: starting pitching. Marte, 32, is a three-time All-Star and a career .281 hitter who has hit at least 25 home runs for three consecutive years.
He also has an economical contract – five years and $91 million plus a sixth-year player option at $11.5 million remaining – which makes him particularly attractive to potential suitors.
Hazen told MLB.com that while there has been progress in talks for Marte with other teams, nothing has come close to what the Diamondbacks are looking for. The general manager added that he had informed the teams that talks would soon be halted.
“We’re going to have to start focusing a little more specifically on our position player group at some point,” Hazen told the website. “It’s another reason to finalize what we’re doing with other players, so we have a little more direction on what we can do and what it might look like.”
