{"id":365604,"date":"2025-12-23T14:00:14","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T14:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/365604\/"},"modified":"2025-12-23T14:00:14","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T14:00:14","slug":"mlb-trade-rumors-mets-enter-sweepstakes-for-ketel-marte","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/365604\/","title":{"rendered":"MLB trade rumors: Mets enter sweepstakes for Ketel Marte"},"content":{"rendered":"

The New York Mets\u2019 trade of Jeff McNeil<\/a> on Monday has made their need for additional everyday players more acute.<\/p>\n

And, according to MLB insider Francys Romero, one of those targets could be Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte, whom Arizona could trade to acquire numerous pieces, including pitching, into the organization, likely at a lower cost.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Jeff McNeil gone, the Mets are believed to be exploring Ketel Marte, or at least discussing him in trade talks, per an industry source,\u201d Romero reported via X on Monday<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One of Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns\u2019 first moves this offseason was trading longtime outfielder Brandon Nimmo<\/a> to the Texas Rangers for second baseman Marcus Semien. At the time, it seemed like a move solely to bolster the Mets\u2019 defense, an area that Stearns has emphasized as a need over the past couple of months.<\/p>\n

Days later, however, a report emerged from The New York Post<\/a> of a fractured and drama-filled clubhouse. Last year, shortstop Francisco Lindor and McNeil had a heated confrontation over a miscue by McNeil, and Lindor and right fielder Juan Soto were not the warmest of friends, the Post reported.<\/p>\n

This continued an offseason makeover that saw mainstays Edwin Diaz (Los Angeles Dodgers)<\/a> and Pete Alonso (Baltimore Orioles)<\/a> left in free agency and McNeil was dealt to the Oakland Athletics for a Rookie-ball pitcher.<\/p>\n

Marte, 32, would come to the Mets at a reasonable price \u2014 he signed a seven-year, $116.5 million contract entering 2025 \u2014 but the fit is questionable. <\/p>\n

Per the Associated Press<\/a>: Marte received criticism for missing three crucial games following the All-Star break after flying back to his home in the Dominican Republic \u2014 a situation that apparently festered in the clubhouse.<\/p>\n

The All-Star said he initially expected to return to Phoenix immediately following the break but was \u201cfrustrated\u201d and \u201cin a bad spot\u201d after he learned his residence in Scottsdale, Arizona, had been burglarized during the break<\/a>, according to the interpreter.<\/p>\n

Despite experience at shortstop and center field earlier in his career, Marte has exclusively been a second baseman, Semien\u2019s position, over the past four seasons. With McNeil gone, the Mets\u2019 biggest hole is in the outfield, where rookie Carson Benge (left field) and veteran Tyrone Taylor (center field) are the projected starters, according to Fangraphs<\/a>. Designated hitter, where Mark Vientos is the favorite, is also a possibility.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no doubting Marte\u2019s bat, however. In his age-31 season, Marte had one of his finest years, slashing .283\/.376\/.517 with 28 home runs and 72 RBIs as he earned his third All-Star nod. In 2024, he finished third in MVP voting, too, as he posted a 154 OPS+ compared to a 145 mark in 2025.<\/p>\n

His Statcast page is a sea of red<\/a>, with Marte\u2019s bat speed in the 85th percentile. <\/p>\n

He would undoubtedly provide formidable lineup protection for Soto, too. But where would he play?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The New York Mets\u2019 trade of Jeff McNeil on Monday has made their need for additional everyday players…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":365605,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[363,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-365604","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mlb","8":"tag-mlb","9":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=365604"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365604\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/365605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=365604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=365604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=365604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}