Diamondbacks, Ketel Marte agree to 5-year, $76 million extension: Sources

The Arizona Diamondbacks and outfielder Ketel Marte have agreed to a five-year, $76 million extension, sources tell The Athletic.

Under his current contract, Marte is set to make $8.4 million this season, and the Diamondbacks have team options for 2023 ($11 million) and 2024 ($13 million). The 28-year-old’s new deal, which begins in 2023, guarantees the club options, but with different salary figures. Marte will earn an additional $51 million under the new extension, according to sources.

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Last season, Marte was limited to 90 games due to hamstring issues. Despite that, he slashed .318/.377/.532 with 50 RBIs and 14 home runs.

Marte finished fourth in National League MVP voting in 2019 after hitting .329 and 32 home runs.

(Photo: Norm Hall / Getty Images)

GO DEEPER

The Diamondbacks now have Ketel Marte signed for the long haul

Why extend Marte now?

Zach Buchanan, Diamondbacks beat writer: To answer this question, it’s important to look at where the Diamondbacks are as a team. They had the worst record in baseball last year. They have three more years of control of Marte — on very team-friendly terms — under his previous contract.

That suggests they should trade him for prospects. The only reason not to is if they planned to lock him up for even longer and rebuild around him, and to do that, you don’t want to wait until free agency is right around the corner. This gives the Diamondbacks certainty right now.

Why would Marte sign this deal?

Buchanan: We’ll have to wait until the deal is announced to hear Marte’s reasoning, but it’s a very team-friendly contract. It’s entirely plausible that had Marte not signed it and performed well the next three seasons, he would have gotten more than $100 million in free agency. Marcus Semien just got seven years and $175 million from the Rangers at the same age Marte will be three years from now.

Without no-trade protection, Marte still represents an enticing trade chip should the Diamondbacks want to move him down the road. But Marte has also battled injuries the last several seasons, and not every decision has to be made according to which rainbow has the biggest pot of gold at the end.

Expectations for the Diamondbacks in 2022

Buchanan: This team should be better in 2022, but not a contender. The future may be bright in Arizona — they have several exciting young players in the majors and they also have one of the game’s best farm systems — but that’s a few years off.

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