Diamondbacks face Ketel Marte problem in pursuit of Alex Bregman

The Boston Red Sox and Alex Bregman are still in a bit of a stalemate.

The market for the former World Series champion reportedly hasn't been as active as he anticipated, and a return to Fenway Park is still in play.

However, MLB insider Bob Nightengale reported that the Arizona Diamondbacks have now become a surprise suitor for his services. But the only way the Diamondbacks may have enough financial flexibility to make a run at him would probably require trading Ketel Marte.

The Diamondbacks have a Ketel Marte decision to make

Per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Diamondbacks would "lose leverage" if they were to sign Bregman before trading Marte.

"The deferrals in Marte’s contract lower his average annual value for luxury-tax purposes to $14.6 million," Rosenthal explained. "Bregman likely would go for at least twice that AAV, but the Diamondbacks’ current payroll is an estimated $17 million lower than it was last season."

Notably, the Red Sox are reportedly one of the teams keeping tabs on Ketel Marte, and they're not included in his no-trade list. Maybe the teams can work something out there. 

Bregman could become the Diamondbacks' new third baseman, with Tim Tawa, Jordan Lawlar and Blaze Alexander all as potential replacements for Marte.

That's not the type of move the Diamondbacks usually make, but they've already shown that they can be very aggressive when they want a veteran, just like they did with Corbin Burnes last season.