Torey Lovullo says team is focused on getting Ketel Marte back on the field following meeting

Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said the team is focused on getting Ketel Marte back on the field following a meeting with the player on Thursday.

Lovullo appeared on MLB Network Radio on Friday, four days after Marte did not show up for a game at Fenway Park, leaving the D-backs in the dark about why he did not appear.

Lovullo provided some context behind the meeting that general manager Mike Hazen, Marte’s agent and he had with Marte on Thursday.

“We put everything on the table, and we were talking about the process and what it’s gonna take to get him back on the field,” Lovullo said. “I thought it was a pretty productive meeting. Mike (Hazen) ran point on it, and I thought he did a fantastic job.”

“Getting Ketel healthy and back on the field is the most important thing right now.”

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Marte was placed on the 10-day injured list on Thursday due to left knee inflammation. The move came after Marte did not show up to Fenway Park for the Diamondbacks’ game against the Boston Red Sox and did not tell Lovullo or the team he would be absent. He was placed on the restricted list, which is for players who are not playing for personal, legal or other non-baseball reasons.

While Lovullo did not reveal the reason for Marte’s absence, he said the details he got left him feeling good about the conversation.

“I didn’t know a lot of details, and yesterday I was able to find out a few of the details that I needed to find out, and I did have parts of the conversation that were very difficult in a lot of different directions. We feel good about it, and getting Ketel Marte healthy and strong and back on the field is the most important thing right now,” Lovullo said.

Marte’s absence this week has been nothing new to the D-backs over the last few seasons. He asked for a day off during the final week of the 2024 season and did not show up at Chase Field after the 2025 All-Star break. In 2025, he was placed on the restricted list and missed the first series after the break.

Marte had traveled to the Dominican Republic, reportedly before his home in Scottsdale was burglarized.

Lovullo said Marte’s latest absence has been a new experience for the 10-year manager, and it was difficult at times to navigate how to navigate the situation within the clubhouse.

“That’s been a great challenge,” Lovullo said. “This has been a whole new space for me, and I was just relying on my instincts and what to do for the 26 players that were present and going out there for three days for Boston. This one definitely caught me by surprise.

“I want to manage young men. That’s my job: to manage young men on and off the field, and it’s very important to me to make sure they are doing things right in both areas.”

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