| Ketel Marte | |
|---|---|
 Marte with theArizona Diamondbacks in 2017 | |
| Arizona Diamondbacks – No. 4 | |
| Second baseman | |
| Born: (1993-10-12)October 12, 1993 (age 32) Nizao,Dominican Republic | |
Bats: Switch Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| July 31, 2015, for the Seattle Mariners | |
| MLB statistics (through 2025 season) | |
| Batting average | .281 |
| Hits | 1,273 |
| Home runs | 171 |
| Runs batted in | 587 |
| Stolen bases | 65 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Ketel Ricardo Marte Valdez (born October 12, 1993) is a Dominican professionalbaseballsecond baseman for theArizona Diamondbacks ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for theSeattle Mariners. Marte made his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2015, and was traded to the Diamondbacks during the 2016–17 offseason. Marte has been named the starting second baseman for the2019,2024 and2025 All-Star Games. In 2023, he wonNLCS MVP en route to Arizona's first pennant since 2001.
Marte signed with theSeattle Mariners as an international free agent on August 13, 2010, receiving a $100,000 signing bonus.[1][2] He made his professional debut in 2011 for theDominican Summer League Mariners.[3] In 2012, he played with theEverett AquaSox of theClass A Short SeasonNorthwest League andClinton LumberKings of theClass AMidwest League. Marte spent the 2013 season with Clinton and theHigh Desert Mavericks of theClass A-AdvancedCalifornia League.[4] Hebatted .295 with a .687on-base plus slugging (OPS). Marte started 2014 with theJackson Generals of theDouble-ASouthern League and was promoted to theTacoma Rainiers of theTriple-APacific Coast League (PCL).[5] He finished the season hitting .304 with a .746 OPS and fourhome runs.[6] On November 20, 2014, Ketel was added to Seattle's 40-man roster.[7]
The Mariners promoted Marte to the major leagues on July 31, 2015.[8] Going into the 2016 season, Marte was named the team's starting shortstop following the trade ofBrad Miller.[9] However, Marte struggled in 2016, batting .259 with a .287 on-base percentage and striking out 84 times in 119 games while missing significant time due to a left thumb injury andmononucleosis that resulted in 3 separate stint on thedisabled list.[10] The Mariners attempted to trade Marte for theCincinnati Reds'Zack Cozart during the season.[11]
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On November 23, 2016, the Mariners traded Marte andTaijuan Walker to theArizona Diamondbacks in exchange forJean Segura,Mitch Haniger, andZac Curtis.[12] Marte began the 2017 season with theReno Aces of the PCL. The Diamondbacks promoted him to the majors on June 28.[13] In theNational League (NL) Wild Card Game, he hit two triples in an 11–8 win over theColorado Rockies. He homered in Game 1 of theNL Division Series and batted .333 as theLos Angeles Dodgers swept the Diamondbacks.[14] Marte was moved from shortstop to second base by the Diamondbacks ahead of the 2018 season to make room for shortstopNick Ahmed in the Arizona infield.[15] In 2018, Marte led all of MLB in triples with 12, batting .260 with 14 home runs in his first full season in Phoenix.[16]
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Batting .316 with 20 home runs and 51 RBIs in late June 2019, Marte was named the starting second baseman for theMLB All-Star Game.[17] He finished the season batting .329 with 32 home runs and finished fourth inNL MVP voting. He played more games in center field than second base. In the shortened 2020 season, Marte hit .287 with 2 home runs and 17 RBI.[18] On April 8, 2021, Marte was placed on the 10-dayinjured list with a righthamstring strain. He returned on May 19.[19]
On March 29, 2022, Marte signed a five-year, $76 million contract extension with the Diamondbacks.[20] He finished the 2022 season batting a career-low .240.[21][22]
Marte rebounded in 2023, batting .276 with 25 home runs and a career-high 71 walks.[22] In Game 3 of the2023 NL Championship Series (NLCS), Marte hit awalk-off single for his third hit of the night as the Diamondbacks won 2–1.[23] In Game 7, Marte extended his postseason hitting streak to 16 games, the longest hitting streak by any player to start his postseason career in MLB history.[24] Marte finished the series batting .387 and was awarded theNLCS MVP Award.[25] Marte extended his streak to 18 games in Game 2 of theWorld Series, setting the MLB record.[26] Marte's streak ended in Game 5 of the series, the longest hit streak in postseason history at 20 games, passingManny Ramirez,Derek Jeter, andHank Bauer, who all had 17-game streaks. Marte was the last out of the World Series, striking out looking againstRangers relieverJosh Sborz to clinch the series for the Rangers.
Batting .292 with 19 home runs and 57 RBI at the 2024 All-Star Break, Marte was named the starting second baseman for theAll-Star Game.[27][28] On August 19, Marte was placed on the 10-dayinjured list with a leftankle sprain. He returned on September 6.[29] He ended the 2024 season with batting .292 with a career-high 36 HRs and 95 RBI. Marte won his firstSilver Slugger Award of his career.[30] He finished third in NL MVP voting and was named to the All-MLB First Team.[22][31]
On April 2, 2025, the Diamondbacks signed Marte to a six-year contract extension worth a guaranteed $116.5 million.[32] Three days later, Marte was placed on the 10-dayinjured list with a lefthamstring strain. He returned on May 2.[33] On June 2, Marte reached third place on the all-time career RBIs list as a Diamondback with 481. He surpassedSteve Finley’s 479 with his two-run homer in the third inning. He trailedLuis Gonzalez (774) andPaul Goldschmidt (710).[34] In July, Marte was voted to start his thirdAll-Star Game.[35] The night of the All-Star Game, his home inScottsdale, Arizona was robbed; Marte said he lost $400,000 worth of items. Marte missed three games following the All-Star break, traveling to the Dominican Republic. His absence frustrated some of his teammates, according to a report in the Arizona Republic in August.[36] Days after the report, Marte apologized for his absence.[37] Marte finished the 2025 season batting .283 with 28 home runs in 126 games, his fewest since 2021.[22] For the second consecutive year, the Diamondbacks were eliminated from the postseason in the final series of the season.[38]
Marte is the nephew of former MLB infielderWilson Valdez and is married to a cousin ofVladimir Guerrero Jr.[39] He has five children.[10]
Marte's mother, Elpidia Valdez, died in a car accident in the Dominican Republic in 2017. The Diamondbacks placed Marte on the bereavement list following her death.[40] In June 2025, a fan atRate Field in Chicago heckled Marte regarding his mother, leading Marte to break down in tears. TheChicago White Sox and MLB announced the fan was banned from attending games indefinitely.[41][42][43]
Marte is nicknamed "Pike," (PEE-keh) which in the Dominican Republic refers to someone with "swag".[10][44]
