The Diamondbacks are heading into the offseason with payroll on the table, and team president Hall made it clear he expects that number to come down.
Asked how he sees the budget shaping up for 2026 after Arizona’s recent push to get back to the playoffs, Hall said, “I do not think we need to spend at that level to win and believe it will come down. I realize I said the same before last season and we obviously increased, but with so many young players, we should be able to better manage a Major League budget without sacrificing our competitiveness. In fact, we would only do so if we thought we would improve our results as well.”
That comes after ownership stretched the budget in recent seasons while the club has finished just a game or two short of the postseason since its run to the World Series in 2023.
Arizona also brought back outfielder A.J. Vukovich on a new deal, according to the Aces’ official announcement on Sunday. Vukovich has spent the past six seasons in the Diamondbacks’ system after being selected 119th overall in the fourth round of the 2020 MLB draft.
His power started to show more clearly in 2023 at Double-A Amarillo, where he slugged .485 and hit 24 home runs. That came in a Texas League environment that was heavily tilted toward offense, but it was still enough to push him up to No. 14 on Arizona’s top 30 prospect list at the time.
There’s also a bigger name hanging over Arizona’s offseason: Ketel Marte. MLB Trade Rumors noted that teams are expected to start laying groundwork for trade discussions as the GM Meetings begin, and Marte is one of the most prominent players available. The report said the Diamondbacks have more or less signaled they’ll listen to offers on the three-time All-Star, who has frustrated people inside the organization by not showing up for certain games over the years.
Marte has full no-trade protection after reaching 10 years of service time, with the last five seasons coming in Arizona. He’s under contract for five more years at $87.5 million, covering ages 33 through 37, and is set to make $12 million next season, including $3 million deferred.
Even with a .249/.316/.432 line this year, that salary would be manageable. If Marte gets back closer to the version of himself that once looked like the best second baseman in the sport, the deal could look like a bargain. Still, some teams may be wary of his work habits, and a few could remove him from their board entirely, but Arizona should still draw interest because of the offensive ceiling he has shown at his best.
Around the league, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America named Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle the 2026 American League Rookie of the Year and Reds infielder Sal Stewart the 2026 National League Rookie of the Year.
And Pedro Martinez used a gala appearance in Boston to push for labor peace, saying, “I feel for the fans, and I know when it’s good, and it’s good, baseball is good right now,” Martinez said Saturday, according to the Boston Herald. “So stop the crap around and get something done and don’t lock out baseball for the fans.”
He added that “honestly speaking, I’m pissed” and urged both sides to find a solution. “Please, for the fans, both sides, figure it out, a good way to get it done, and do not lock out baseball,” Martinez said.
In another offseason storyline, Joe Maddon is being considered as a 2027 Contemporary Baseball Era Committee candidate. Jay Jaffe wrote that Maddon was the right manager at the right time more than once, pointing to his rise with Tampa Bay, where he joined a new regime, paired with a cutting-edge front office, and helped turn a franchise that had never won more than 70 games in its first eight seasons into a contender.
The Devil Rays won 66 games in 2007, then 97 games and the AL pennant in 2008 after the name change to the Rays, before falling to the Phillies in the World Series. Maddon later guided Tampa Bay to the playoffs four times in a six-season stretch from 2008 through 2013, won AL Manager of the Year twice, and became known for his glasses, his broad interests, and his embrace of statistical analysis.
In Other News...
Derrick Hall Just Sent D-Backs Fans An Early Warning About 2027
Derrick Hall spent part of his season wrap-up looking back at a year that tested the Diamondbacks depth and resolve, and he came away emphasizing how the club kept pushing even as injuries piled up. The president and CEO also pointed to the bullpen and the young prospects who were forced into bigger roles as bright spots, a reminder that Arizona found value in places it did not necessarily plan to lean on so heavily.
Hall also had reason to smile when he talked about the 25th anniversary reunion of the 2001 World Series team, which gave the organization a chance to celebrate one of its defining moments with the people who lived it. The bigger issue for the present-day club, though, is the financial picture ahead, and Hall made clear the Diamondbacks are preparing for a leaner budget while still trying to stay in the race. [Read more 🡒]
Diamondbacks Offseason Plans Just Got More Complicated Around Corbin Carroll
The Diamondbacks went into the offseason wanting to trim costs, but the expectation now is that the payroll comes down only a little, not enough to force a full-scale reset. That leaves the front office in a familiar middle ground: trying to save money while still leaving room to add quality if the right opportunity comes along. One name that has surfaced in that conversation is pitcher Kyle Bednar, though any real push would depend on how the club reads its budget and how the new Collective Bargaining Agreement shapes spending.
There is also the matter of Corbin Carroll, whose status adds another layer to the winter planning. He recently had surgery to remove loose bodies in his right elbow, and the club expects him to be ready for spring training, which at least keeps one of its core pieces on track. Even so, with trade talk around Ketel Marte complicated by his no-trade clause and personal preferences, the Diamondbacks are navigating an offseason where the financial picture and roster picture are not lining up neatly. [Read more 🡒]
Diamondbacks Linked To Familiar Comeback Arm For Rotation Help
Mike Sorokas name still carries the kind of intrigue that comes with a former top prospect, and for the Diamondbacks, it comes with a familiar layer of context too. Once viewed as a future front-line arm for Atlanta, Soroka saw his career interrupted by injuries in 2020 and 2021, then worked his way back into a real rotation conversation. For a club that has spent recent seasons trying to stabilize its pitching depth, a pitcher who has already shown he can return from major setbacks naturally fits the conversation.
Sorokas recent workload is the part that matters most to Arizona now, because it suggests he is moving closer to the kind of dependable starter the team can count on over a full season. The Diamondbacks have also been linked to other established arms in the broader pitching market, including Kevin Gausman, whose track record since 2021 has been as steady as it gets, even as his contract situation remains tied to Toronto after a midseason move to Chicago. For Arizona, the appeal is obvious: finding a starter who can help without forcing the club to overextend itself. [Read more 🡒]