The Arizona Diamondbacks’ clubhouse culture has been spotlighted for less than ideal reasons during the past week, drudging up trade speculation for All-Star Ketel Marte and further questions of manager Torey Lovullo’s security.

Marte apologized publicly on Monday for how he handled taking time off after the All-Star Game, as teammates anonymously voiced concerns over his asking of days off to azcentral.com’s Nick Piecoro. Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro has reported that a decision is expected to be made shortly after the season on the best path forward with him.

General manager Mike Hazen said the organization is not blind to having an “imperfect clubhouse.” What he made clear is how significant Marte is to winning baseball games.

“Ketel is one of, if not our best player,” Hazen told Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke. “You win with superstars in this league. Yes, I know it’s a team game and putting a team together to win baseball games is equally important. That’s on us to figure out what the right mix of players is.

“Two years ago, we went to the World Series with this player on our team. He broke all kinds of records in the playoffs. So this mindset of where he is on our team and his inability or ability to help us win is hard for me to just take. … We played very poorly defensively and we didn’t pitch very well and we sustained three significant injuries. So where this lays down at his feet and where it’s coming from now is a little bizarre to me.”

Marte is one of the greatest players in Diamondbacks history and the defining player of Lovullo’s and Hazen’s respective tenures.

He is third in Diamondbacks history in games played, hits, home runs and OPS. He passed Luis Gonzalez this season on the franchise’s all-time Baseball Reference WAR leaderboard, only trailing Paul Goldschmidt.

Marte signed an extension through 2030 at the start of this season with a player option for 2031. Despite missing nearly a month due to a hamstring injury, he made the All-Star Game as the clear-cut best second baseman in the game. He entered Wednesday fifth in MLB with a .941 OPS.

After the All-Star Game, Marte and his family flew to the Dominican Republic. Without alerting the team, he missed a game the Friday out of the break and did not come back until a day later. His house in Scottsdale had been burglarized during his trip, which he explained affected him and delayed his return.

Marte missed the entire three-game series to begin the post-All-Star break.

Marte stated this Monday that he’s had the support of his teammates during this time. Shortstop Geraldo Perdomo defended Marte to reporters over the weekend.

The pushback did not occur in a vacuum, as Marte asked for a day off during the final week of last season as the D-backs were pushing toward the postseason. He also took off the final game of the first half this season and then played in the Midsummer Classic two days later.

“I’m not ignoring the inconsistencies with some of the things that have happened,” Hazen said Wednesday. “He’s addressed those things. We’ve addressed those things with him, and we’re not blind to having an imperfect clubhouse and an imperfect roster. So I’m saying that as politely as I can to let you know we’re well aware of the challenges.

“I’m also in a position to put players on the field that can win you baseball games, because ultimately that’s what this comes down to. So we are gonna put the best team on the field every single day we can. And that mix of talent, clubhouse makeup, which we value a ton, is all going into that.”

When asked whether there is a different set of rules for some players, Hazen said there is a certain standard that applies to everyone, but he acknowledged that not every player receives the same treatment. Some players naturally have an elevated status.

Players also get days off for injury management, and Marte explained that his off days help him sustain the best version of himself.

A question with the Diamondbacks is whether they’ve gone too far with Marte and if they need to alter how he’s managed.

“I also want to focus more on the things that I think have driven more wins and losses this year. And quite frankly, it’s not on the offense or the position players, it’s been on the pitching and the defense,” Hazen said.