January 7: Martin’s deal with the Rangers guarantees him $5.5MM, Robert Murray of FanSided reports. Murray added that Martin turned down more money from other clubs to return to his hometown club for the final season of his career. WEEI’s Rob Bradford reports that the Red Sox were one team that made a lucrative offer.
January 6: The Rangers announced the signing of a veteran reliever Chris Martin on a one-year contract. Financial terms remain unreported. Martin is represented by ISE Baseball. Selected Texas Matt Festa with an assignment to open a 40-man roster spot.
Martin, an Arlington native, is returning home for what could be his final season. The 38-year-old righty said in September that he is 95% confident he will retire after 2025. Martin remains a highly skilled arm and is coming off a strong two-year run in Boston.
The Red Sox signed Martin to a $17.5MM free agent contract through the 2022-23 offseason. It was a gamble considering his age, but the nine-year MLB veteran has made good on that investment less than one season. Martin had an excellent 1.05 earned run average in 51 1/3 innings in 2023. He received a narrow Cy Young vote in the process.
Last season was better than dominant. Martin worked to a 3.45 ERA while pitching 44 1/3 innings. He had a short injury-related concern in mid-June. Martin also missed a month with elbow inflammation between the beginning of July and the first week of August. He returned with 10 innings and just one earned run over the next few weeks before allowing six runs in eight frames in September.
Martin probably wouldn’t have managed an ERA near 1.00 in consecutive seasons. His hitter and walk profile improved last year. He struck out 27.8% of the batters he faced after posting a 23.1% strikeout rate in 2023. Martin lowered his already pristine walk rate from 4% to a low clip of 1.7%. He is arguably the best strikeout pitcher in the majors. No pitcher with at least 100 innings over the past three seasons has issued a lower rate of walks than Martin (2.6%).
In his two seasons with the Sox, Martin managed a 2.16 ERA in 95 1/3 innings. He has found success in all areas since returning to Japan during 2016-17. That includes a previous run in Texas. The Rangers were the team that offered Martin a chance during the 2017-18 offseason. He compiled 79 2/3 innings of 3.84 ERA ball before being traded to the Braves at the 2019 trade deadline.
Texas loaded up on short-term additions to make up for the bullpen that could lose each Kirby Yates, David Robertson, José Leclerc again José Ureña. They have signed Shawn Armstrong, Jacob Webb again Hoby Milner on one-year contracts worth $2.5MM or less. Texas also brought a southpaw Robert Garcia from Washington Nathaniel Lowe trade. Although the fees for Martin have not been reported, it is fair to assume that he will be the most expensive acquisition in Chris Young’s bullpen to date. However, there is a minimum limit for a one-year contract.
Martin is one of the most experienced providers in Texas. He has worked in the setup position throughout his career and has never saved more than four games in a season. It is not clear whether the Rangers plan to shut him down or whether they will use him in higher positions. Yates and Robertson have more closing experience and can still work for them for free. Regardless of the role, Martin adds much-needed stability to a bullpen that could be the team’s biggest question.
Texas signed Festa, 31, to a minor league contract last season. The Rangers picked up his contract in August. He made 18 appearances over the last six weeks, working to a 4.37 ERA in 22 2/3 innings. The righty made a brief appearance for the Mets earlier in the year. He spent most of his career with the Mariners, with whom he posted a 4.32 ERA in 89 outings over four seasons. Texas will have five days to trade Festa or put it on hold.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports.
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