Henry Martinez entered into 2019 spring training as one of the Indians most interesting relief prospects and it didn’t take too long for him to get into the action, pitching on opening day against the Reds. While his opponents weren’t quite MLB quality, he set them down as quickly as possible as he retired Connor Joe (AAA) and Aristides Aquino (AA) on balls in play before striking out Chris Okey (AA) to end the game in a 3-3 tie.
While this didn’t particularly showcase the Indians high ceiling reliever, it was the best possible result. Now 24 years old and heading into his sixth season with the Indians, Martinez is still not on the 40 man roster, but is finally getting some attention as a spring training invitee to MLB camp.
The 2018 season was a huge leap for Martinez as he regularly neared triple digits on the radar gun and essentially skipped high A (one game in 2017, six games in 2018) on his way to dominating with AA Akron. There, he made 32 appearances for 32.2 innings good for a 2.76 ERA (his best since his rookie campaign with the DSL Indians in 2014) and an 8.8 K/9. Once promoted to Columbus, his ERA took a hit largely thanks to a nearly impossible .813 BABIP over his first four games (2.1 IP, 13 H, 11 R, 1 BB, 4 K). It took little time for Martinez to right the ship prior to the end of the season and he wrapped up the year with just two more runs scored across his final 8.2 innings. His other numbers continued to impress as well as he struck out ten more and walked just three, finishing the year with a 11.5 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in his short stint in Columbus.
While Martinez has been in the system for a long time, the 2018 season was really the first time that he set himself apart from the crowd. His added velocity and increased K-rate pushed him into the Indians top 50 prospects at #34, 7th among pure relievers. While this ranking may seem low, it has more to do with ultimate ceiling than current MLB readiness. Of those seven, there is no question that Martinez is the closest to the big leagues considering both his development process and his nearness to his peak.
While Martinez is yet to prove he can sustain his single season of great success in AAA, his late season improvements in Columbus show signs that he shouldn’t have trouble doing so. Based on the long history of the Indians being extremely cautious when calling up prospects, Martinez will almost certainly head back to the Clippers to start the season, although they could keep him in MLB camp for an extended time as they insure that they have enough healthy relievers to send back to Cleveland.
Keeping Martinez in Columbus does more than just make sure he is ready for the big time. Because he hasn’t been included on the 40 man roster to this point, it won’t cost the Indians a minor league option to send Martinez back and he still has two seasons until he becomes a minor league free agent if he isn’t protected. This gives the Indians an opportunity to look at other pitchers who may be out of minor league options or who would have to be exposed to waivers should they be sent back to the minor leagues. As strong favorites in the AL Central, getting the bullpen to peak performance in April isn’t as big of a deal as making sure you don’t miss out on someone who could be ready to break out like Chih-Wei Hu or Ben Taylor.
As the season progresses, however, Martinez will certainly get a chance to prove himself. Undoubtedly, the Indians will have positions open up in the bullpen due to injuries or poor play and Martinez will likely be the closer in Columbus. Should he keep his strike out rate high and his walk rate low, he is in a prime position to make the leap to the big leagues. At this point it would take a very poor season in AAA to keep Martinez out of the Majors beyond 2019.
Should he get the promotion, Martinez could quickly become one of the Indians more reliable pitchers. They currently have few elite arms in the bullpen beyond Brad Hand and the fire baller could fill some of the hole left by Cody Allen and Andrew Miller when they hit free agency. If he is called up in 2019, he’ll also get the advantage of establishing himself in the big leagues prior to the ascent of some of those other high end relievers like Adam Scott and Nick Sandlin. This could give him some advantage in the ultimate competition for the next Indians closer after Hand, who is signed through 2021.
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