The Boston Red Sox whirlwind of trade activity and rumors has not stopped since the offseason started. The team has made 10 trades involving players on the 40-man roster (as of December 22), and show no signs of slowing down.
Boston has been linked to Arizona Diamondbacks star second baseman Ketel Marte by multiple sources. While Bob Nightengale reported the night of the Willson Contreras deal that the Red Sox were "expected to end" trade talks with the Diamondbacks, that was never corroborated by another baseball insider. Nightengale's wording doesn't guarantee an ending, only an expectation.
While the Sox may still be in talks for Marte, another team seems to be throwing its hat into the ring. According to Francys Romero, the Mets are starting to explore the switch-hitting second baseman as an option. This came after the Mets traded away their primary second baseman, Jeff McNeil, in a salary dump to the Athletics earlier that day.
With Jeff McNeil gone, the Mets are believed to be exploring Ketel Marte, or at least discussing him in trade talks, per an industry source.
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) December 22, 2025
Mets' vacancy at second base after Jeff McNeil trade could motivate them to beat Red Sox to Ketel Marte trade
New York is now the second team to trade away their starting second baseman and be engaged in talks for Marte. The Rays traded away Brandon Lowe to the Pirates in the three-team deal on December 19. While Tampa had reportedly already been talking to Arizona about Marte well before the trade, it also cleared a position and cap space to make the deal.
The Mets are in a similar position with trade assets as the Red Sox — they have a wealth of starting pitchers and middle infield prospects to trade from. Arizona has made it clear it wants MLB-ready starters, and at least in Boston's case, wants Marcelo Mayer, Connelly Early or Payton Tolle. The Mets have young controllable starters, just like the Sox. While they don't have a blue-chip player like Mayer, their former No. 3 prospect, according to Joe DeMayo of SNY, is Jett Williams, who is a middle infielder/CF and is MLB-ready.
This complicates an already trying offseason for Red Sox fans. Boston has yet to get the true impact bat Red Sox Nation has been clamoring for, and hopes had been growing about a potential Red Sox-Marte union. While Contreras will provide steady production, he doesn't have the MVP upside that a player like Marte brings.
The Marte trade route is a little less likely after the Contreras trade, but can't be completely ruled out. The longer the Red Sox wait to try to acquire him, the harder it's going to get. The Mets getting into the mix makes it much, much harder.