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The Toronto Blue Jays are having a rough 2026 season, as the team has dealt with a plethora of injuries to key players and has struggled to stay afloat due to all of the issues with the team.
At 22-27, the Blue Jays aren't out of the playoff race just yet, but they need to turn things around, and soon, to act as buyers at the trade deadline. But, assuming they can turn things around with their World Series-caliber roster, they should be big buyers.
With a need in both the starting rotation and for the lineup, Bleacher Report's Zachardy D. Rymer focused on the latter, predicting that the Blue Jays would swing a trade for a $105 million infielder and Arizona Diamondbacks All-Star slugger Ketel Marte.
Blue Jays predicted to trade for Ketel Marte
"Ketel Marte will be the best hitter traded," Rymer writes. "He should be on the Blue Jays' radar, as they need more pop arguably just as much as they need starting pitching. ...Prediction: Traded to Blue Jays."
With the need for more infield help, the Blue Jays could acquire Marte, a star infielder who's been one of the best second basemen in baseball the last few years.
Ernie Clement isn't a bad second baseman, but he's able to move around if needed, so the Blue Jays could look to replace Andres Gimenez's spot in the lineup by adding Marte to play second base and moving Clement to shortstop.
The Diamondbacks had been open to a Marte trade this past offseason, and the Blue Jays were linked to Marte over the winter.
Marte, now 32 years old and under club control through the 2030 season, would be a long-term investment for the Blue Jays.
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They have a ton of money coming off the books in the next few years, so there would be no worry about having the resources to roster him in 2027 and beyond.
He has a .702 OPS and 95 OPS+ this year in 45 games, so he's not been nearly as good as his 146 OPS+ season in 2025 and his 154 OPS+ season in 2024.
But, in his last six games, Marte has 10 hits, eight runs scored, two doubles, two homers, seven RBIs, three walks, one strikeout, a .400 average, and a 1.168 OPS.
Marte would be a very fun trade pickup for the Blue Jays, so this prediction from Rymer is one that fans should hope comes true. It would cost a lot, but he'd be a very fun addition to the offense.
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