Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Arizona Diamondbacks will have a far tougher time trading Ketel Marte, who now has 10-5 rights.
- The Miami Marlins are still expected to shop Sandy Alcantara at the trade deadline.
- The looming return of Seiya Suzuki has Matt Shaw's future in question with the Cubs.
The MLB season isn't even two weeks old, but that doesn't mean things are quiet on the rumor mill. In fact, we've seen several players, from stars like Pete Crow-Armstrong to prospects like Colt Emerson, sign extensions, and we've seen trade rumors begin to percolate.
With that in mind, here are the latest rumors worthy of your attention.
Ketel Marte earns full no-trade clause, putting Diamondbacks trade talks on hold
- Ketel Marte earned his 10-5 rights by reaching 10 years of MLB service time
- This means he has a full no-trade clause
- Previous trade rumors involving Marte are on hold for the time being
At certain points of the 2025 offseason, it felt as if the Arizona Diamondbacks were going to trade Ketel Marte. Now, a deal never materialized, but the fact that he was as prevalent in rumors as he was, suggested his future in Arizona was far from secure. Well, now that Marte has earned a full no-trade clause, he won't be going anywhere anytime soon unless he wants to leave.
Marte earned said clause because he has reached 10 years of big league service time and has spent five years with the Diamondbacks. Players who have been in the league for 10 or more years and have spent five or more years with one team earn what's called 10-5 rights, which is essentially a full no-trade clause. Even if the Diamondbacks decide they'd like to trade him, as long as Marte remains in an Arizona uniform, they'll need his approval before shipping him off.
That's what made keeping him so risky. Marte is an excellent player that any team would love to have, but some clubhouse concerns in Arizona made it seem as if the Diamondbacks were eager to move on. Things might be fine on that front now, but he could be under contract through 2031 if he accepts his player option that year. Whether the Diamondbacks decide they've had enough by then won't matter if Marte is hellbent on staying put.
It'll be interesting to see if the decision to hold onto him will backfire or not.
Marlins likely to trade Sandy Alcantara despite hot start
- Sandy Alcantara and the Miami Marlins are off to a scorching start
- Even still, rival executives expect the Marlins to trade Alcantara at the deadline
The Miami Marlins were one of MLB's best teams in the second half last season and have carried their momentum into the 2026 campaign, as evidenced by their NL East-leading 6-3 record. A lot has gone right for Miami in the early going, but nothing is more encouraging than seeing Sandy Alcantara look like his former Cy Young self. The right-hander followed up seven shutout innings on Opening Day by delivering a complete-game shutout his last time out. He's allowed no runs in 16 innings across two starts, yet the focus isn't on Alcantara's resurgence; it's on Bob Nightengale's report discussing the likelihood that the Marlins will trade him by the trade deadline.
"Rival executives still fully expect the Marlins to trade Alcantara, knowing they should have perhaps baseball’s most lucrative trade chip at the July 31 deadline," Nightengale wrote.
That's right - despite a strong start to their season and a fairly substantial sample size of things moving in the right direction for Miami, the Marlins are expected to trade their ace. Things can change, but that's what rival executives believe.
I get why Alcantara would make sense to trade. He's only under contract through 2027 (assuming his $21 million club option is exercised), and with how he's looked to start this season, he could net them a haul at the trade deadline. Plus, even with this version of Alcantara, it's hard to envision the Marlins doing much damage in October, if they can even get there at all.
Still, both the Marlins and Alcantara look good, and if Miami is in the postseason hunt, are they really going to trade him? The Marlins capitalizing on Alcantara's value if they're out of the hunt would be one thing, but doing so while they're competitive would be a pretty shocking decision.
Matt Shaw's role could change imminently
- Seiya Suzuki's looming return could push Matt Shaw to the Cubs bench
- Shaw is just 24 years old and needs regular playing time to improve
- Craig Counsell was noncommittal as to Shaw's playing time
When the Chicago Cubs signed Alex Bregman, it became apparent that Matt Shaw was going to be moved to more of a utility role. They'd find ways to get him some at-bats, but would be creative in doing so by playing him all over the diamond. Seiya Suzuki's injury opened the door for Shaw to play a lot of right field to begin the year. Shaw has appeared in eight of the nine games the Cubs have played thus far, with seven of the eight coming in right field. He has been their primary option out there. That figures to change sooner rather than later, though, as Suzuki nears his return.
Craig Counsell expects to have Suzuki back on Friday, April 10, for the Cubs' series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Suzuki just has to prove he's healthy enough to play right field before then.
“We’re probably dealing with at-bats as much as anything here,” Counsell said. “He didn’t get a full spring. Multiple weeks off. It’s just making sure he’s ready to go offensively….We want him to play right field, so we’ll activate him when he’s ready to play right field.”
Assuming Suzuki is able to return on Friday, Shaw figures to revert to the role the Cubs initially expected him to play. Is this what's best for him, though? I mean, Shaw, a 24-year-old who should be playing regularly, has gotten off to a slow start (.588 OPS) with mostly regular playing time. Will he hit better when his at-bats become more sporadic? How often will Craig Counsell be able to find at-bats for him? It'll be interesting to find the answers to these questions.
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