Ketel Marte spotted at casino during Diamondbacks game as off-field drama continues

The Ketel Marte saga took another turn Friday as photos surfaced on social media showing the Diamondbacks second baseman at a local casino during the team's home game against the Reds ( ARI 9, CIN 0 ). Marte is currently on the injured list with a knee issue. He was initially placed on the restricted list after failing to show up for a game against the Red Sox in Boston on Monday .

"He's free to do whatever he wants," manager Torey Lovullo said following Friday's game (via the Arizona Republic ). "That's how I look at it. As long as he wakes up tomorrow morning and posts, and gets his work done at Salt River, which I am certain he will, that's all that matters to me right now."

Marte was spotted Friday sitting at a roulette table as a nearby television showed the D-backs game in the top of the sixth inning. After no-showing on Monday, he did not explain his absence to the team until meeting with club officials on Thursday, at which point he was moved from the restricted list to the injured list. Marte left the team in Boston to undergo testing on his knee.

Players on the injured list are generally not required to attend games. Marte was rehabbing his knee injury early in the day at Salt River Fields, the team's spring training complex in Arizona, which is common practice. Lovullo did, however, say earlier Friday that he felt "betrayed" by the entire ordeal with Marte.

"I was hurting. I was clearly hurting," Lovullo said prior to Friday's game (via The Athletic ). "Once I saw what was unfolding, I became extremely frustrated, and I felt betrayed. And that's a whole different type of pain and frustration. But I'm through that. I'm getting through that."

Reliever Kevin Ginkel expressed frustration with Marte, saying (via The Athletic ): "For us to go where we want to go, we've got to have him here. It's disappointing how the things that happened happened. There's really no explanation for it."

This is not the first time Marte has frustrated teammates. He was away from the D-backs after his home was broken into during last year's All-Star break , plus there has also been criticism about his penchant for requesting days off. Marte had started 116 of the team's 125 games before going AWOL on Monday.

Marte, 32, is having a down season by his usual standards. He finished third in the MVP voting in 2024 and was an All-Star the last two years. Marte was in trade rumors all offseason, though Arizona was unable to work out a deal. He gained full no-trade protection as a 10-and-5 player (10 years in MLB, including the last five with the same team) in April.

Any discontent with Marte has not stopped the D-backs from signing him to contract extensions. He inked a seven-year extension worth $116.5 million last April. It includes a $11.5 million player option for the 2031 season. That was the third time Arizona extended Marte. They previously signed him to five-year deals in 2018 and 2023.

Friday's win improved the D-backs to 68-61. They are one game behind the Padres for the third wild card spot.