D-Backs may pursue Martinez as part of 'aggressive' offseason

The Arizona Diamondbacks were ousted from the playoffs during the National League Division Series after their best regular season since winning the NL West in 2011 and it appears they're ready to go all-in for next season, too.

Diamondbacks president and CEO Derrick Hall plans to be "aggressive" during the offseason, which could mean a potential reunion with free-agent outfielder J.D. Martinez.

"We're going to be aggressive for, really, any and all players that can help us," Hall told MLB.com's Steve Gilbert when asked about re-signing Martinez. "Now, with him being officially a free agent, we can't really comment on him or any of our other guys that have turned free agent. But, obviously, he meant a lot to us this past season and we're taking a strong look."

Martinez is the top free-agent hitter available after putting together a fine 2017 campaign, hitting .303/.376/.690 with 45 home runs and 104 RBIs.

The 30-year-old was unreal for the Diamondbacks after being acquired from the Detroit Tigers in July, mashing 29 dingers and driving in 65 runs in 62 games.

Martinez won't come cheap though, with his agent, Scott Boras, reportedly looking for a deal in the $200-million range. Boras even likened Martinez to baseball's version of King Kong on Friday and wants him to be paid accordingly.

What that means for the Diamondbacks, who have around $62.5 million committed for next season - excluding the 14 players eligible for arbitration - remains to be seen, but Hill did say they've talked about Martinez coming back to play in the desert, although those conversations are in the early stages.

"We just had very good, open conversations with J.D. about his time here and about where we were and what sort of (financial) room that we either had or could create at some point," Hall explained. "But I wouldn't say significant, movement-wise."