The Arizona Diamondbacks Conundrum:

Bumgarner and Marte Decisions

By: Michael A. Chase Jr.

9/7/2021

       The Arizona Diamondbacks currently own the second worst record in the MLB at 45-93. Sitting 43.0 games out of first place in the NL West and 28.5 games out of a second Wild Card spot. It has been a quick decline for a club that won 85 games two years ago and missed out on a playoff spot by 4 games. Now many questions surround the direction of the organization in terms of their current roster. That is why in this piece I will look to identify two key players that major decisions must be made on to advance Arizona’s current rebuild. Discussing their contracts and roster standing, while determining the options the team has in terms of moving or building around these players.

            The two-season downswing the Diamondbacks are in, can be attributed to poor roster decisions and a lack of direction by the franchise. These two drawbacks have led to the Diamondbacks now being caught in a state of limbo with their big-league club. Having both underperforming stars and all-star level players on a roster several years away from winning. The two players that signify this concept the most are starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner and infielder /outfielder Ketel Marte. These two personnel decisions will be key in Arizona refining the direction of their rebuild. Decisions that will be tough to make in both cases but must be done to get Arizona back on the right track to playoff contention.

            The first major decision deals with big money starter Madison Bumgarner. As to me he was a puzzling signing when he was first brought in by Arizona. Now the Diamondbacks must determine what to do with a huge contract for an underperforming pitcher on a team not close to competing now. The numbers Bumgarner has accumulated his first two seasons with the team have quickly turned his contract into an albatross and difficult to move. Bumgarner is in the second year of a 5 year 85-million-dollar contract. So far, he has pitched to a 5.50 ERA and an 8-13 record in 31 starts with Arizona. As he is showing to be on the decline which for a pitcher making 17 million a year is not a good trend. Arizona to move forward with this rebuild, must find a way to move this contract in my opinion. As this deal will take him into his mid to late 30s on a team at minimum 3 years away from being contenders again in my opinion. They may have to retain a chunk of salary if they choose to trade him. Though they need him to pitch better this final month of the season to make him a more desirable offseason asset as well. It will be tough to give up on this deal two years in, but some of this was a misstep on the D’Backs part. As they likely misjudged the point, they were at in terms of their rebuild process. Thus, the best thing they can do is move him to free up cap space and invest in younger pitching options to build a core rotation. As Bumgarner’s timeline does not matchup with the D’Backs roster and Arizona must realize and accept this reality to move forward.

            Deciding what to do with recently extended infielder/outfielder Ketel Marte is the other key decision Arizona must make. After signing Marte to a 24-million-dollar extension in 2018 that runs until 2025. The D’Backs are stuck with an all-star asset on a team not ready to win, while also being hesitant to trade him to aid their rebuild. Marte has once again been great when healthy for Arizona this year posting a .335 average, 10 homers, and 40 rbi’s in 257 at-bats. Showcasing he is still an all-star player but may be wasting his prime years on a rebuilding club. The Diamondbacks are going to have to be willing to entertain moving Marte. As with him having multiple years of team control and being just 27 years old he could net quite a prospect haul from many teams in need of a dynamic offensive player. Netting a similar haul, a player like Francisco Lindor netted this past offseason for Cleveland. Which is the type of return a rebuilding team in need of further talent infusion would find hard to turn down. Though if they are committed to him as part of their future, they need to adjust their team building strategies with him as the centerpiece of their core. This will be a difficult choice but one that must be determined soon so they can determine their next moves.

            In Bumgarner and Marte, both are players that can help a lot of teams as impact players to varying degrees. But for Arizona how both players fit into their current rebuild remains a question. Marte is still young enough to be apart of their solution, though he may be in some ways better off being used to further gain multiple impact prospects. In Bumgarner’s case he is an aging pitcher with significant innings on his arm that has underperformed mightily so far. He should be in consideration to be moved however possible. To give him a better chance to win on the back half of his career, while opening opportunities for Arizona to evaluate some of their young pitching prospects at the big-league level. For Marte it is a choice of deciding if he is a cornerstone or big-time trade asset. In the end if Arizona comes to make the proper decisions on these two key stars their rebuild will benefit from it. As they will refine the direction, they want their team to go, and further identify what players will be a part of their future winning core.