Ketel Marte has put himself in a mess, and things are not looking good for him. After not showing up for the game against Boston, the Arizona Diamondbacks placed him on the restricted list. Now the question is whether the D-backs are going to bring him back into the team or not. But the major point is that if they don’t, it might actually help them.
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“If Ketel’s out of the lineup on Friday, then we don’t see him again the rest of the year,” said Kellan Olson on the Arizona Sports at Night show.
Reporter Mitch Vareldzis responded: “That feels like a very risky proposition right now.”
Ketel Marte was supposed to be getting back to normal after his knee scare. But now the Diamondbacks might face Cincinnati with no clear idea if he will return at all. There is a good chance that Marte might miss Friday’s game, and there is nothing to show that he might not miss the rest of the season.
Even Mike Hazen, the Diamondbacks’ general manager, admitted there are “a lot of variables.”
This became a serious matter after Marte, without telling anyone, missed Monday’s game against Boston. He had traveled with the team and was expected to serve as the DH. But Marte never came to Fenway Park, and the D-Backs had to make a last-minute change.
The Diamondbacks then placed him on the Restricted List, citing a personal matter. Placing a player on the Restricted List can allow teams to withhold salary. That means the team could save money on him if he stays on the list for the entire season.
His agent confirmed another problem, saying that Marte was also scheduled for a knee MRI.
That is where this story becomes harder to read, because Ketel Marte had just returned. He left Arizona’s August 14 game against Atlanta with left knee soreness. Marte missed the following game, then returned for Sunday’s finale before traveling.
So, the injury was real, but it did not fully explain his skipping the game against the Red Sox. The personal matter and limited communication instead pushed the Diamondbacks to the restricted list.
But this isn’t the first time Marte’s name has appeared on that list.
He missed three games in 2025 after leaving the team for the Dominican Republic. The reason that was given was that his home was burglarized, but the problem was that his home was in Arizona and not in the DR. This led to the team putting him on the RL, and he also had to apologize to the rest of the team.
But this situation carries more uncertainty, with Arizona still waiting for clear answers.