Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Richie Martin

Rangers Sign Declan Cronin To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Rangers have signed right-hander Declan Cronin to a minor league deal with an invite to MLB Spring Training. Cronin was released by the Marlins in September. He’s set to miss the 2026 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Texas also added shortstop Richie Martin and right-handers Peyton Gray and Trey Supak on minor league pacts with spring invitations.

Cronin was a fixture in Miami’s bullpen in 2024, making 56 appearances. He had a middling 4.35 ERA with just over a strikeout per inning across 70 1/3 frames. Cronin hit the IL at the end of that season with a knee injury, then was sidelined to open the 2025 campaign with a hip issue. Cronin landed on the Triple-A injured list in August with an unspecified malady, likely related to the injury that led to the surgery.

The White Sox took Cronin in the 36th round of the 2019 draft. Operating almost strictly as a reliever, the righty reached Triple-A by 2022. Cronin debuted with Chicago in 2023, making nine appearances out of the bullpen. He gave up 11 earned runs in 11 innings with nearly as many walks as strikeouts. The White Sox designated Cronin for assignment at the end of the season, and he was scooped up by the Astros. He would spend less than a month with the organization, as Houston DFAed him in January, and he was grabbed by the Marlins.

The upcoming season will likely be a wash for Cronin, but he offered respectable results when healthy with Miami. Texas will take a flier on him with the hope of getting a usable bullpen option down the line.

Martin first came to the organization on a minor league deal in May. He’ll stick around after hitting .258 across 79 games at Triple-A Round Rock. Martin spent parts of 2019, 2021, and 2022 in the big leagues with Baltimore. He slashed .212/.261/.311 in 447 plate appearances as an Oriole.

The Athletics spent a first-round pick on Martin back in 2015. He delivered tepid offensive results over four minor league seasons with the club. Baltimore claimed him off waivers after the 2018 season. He made the big-league roster in 2019 and appeared in 120 games. A broken wrist cost him the entire 2020 season. Martin saw minimal MLB action in 2021 and 2022, totaling 50 appearances with the Orioles.

Texas initially added Gray on a minor league deal this past offseason. He made seven appearances with Double-A Frisco, then earned a promotion to Triple-A. Gray delivered a 3.84 ERA across 61 innings with Round Rock. The 30-year-old has strong strikeout numbers in his minor league career, but injuries have limited his volume.

Supak also joined the Texas minor league system ahead of the 2025 season and split his season between Frisco and Round Rock. The 29-year-old posted a solid 3.55 ERA in 12 starts with the Express to close his season. Supak was drafted by the Pirates in 2014. He’s spent time in the minors with the Brewers, Athletics, and Cubs.

Photo courtesy of Jesse Johnson, Imagn Images

Angels Release Richie Martin

By | at

The Angels announced last night that they’ve released infielder Richie Martin, who’d been in camp with them as a non-roster invitee after signing a minor league contract back in January.

Martin, 29, appeared in 170 games with the Orioles from 2019-22 after Baltimore selected him with the top pick in the 2018 Rule 5 Draft. He lasted the entire 2019 season on a rebuilding O’s roster and shed that Rule 5 designation, but he’s also never managed to replicate the Double-A production he showed in 2018 that contributed to his Rule 5 selection in the first place.

Martin, a former first-round pick (20th overall by the A’s in 2015), hit .300/.368/.439 with six homers and 25 steals as a 23-year-old in Double-A that year but has since been below average in parts of three Triple-A seasons (.229/.333/.341) and parts of three MLB campaigns (.212/.261/.311). He spent the 2023 season with the Nationals’ Triple-A club, hitting .217/.329/.314 in 425 trips to the plate. He went 1-for-10 with five strikeouts for the Angels this spring before being cut loose.

The addition of Martin was always a depth add for the Halos, who project to have Zach Neto at shortstop, Luis Rengifo at second base, Anthony Rendon at third base, and veteran Brandon Drury to bounce around the infield and spend time at designated hitter as needed. The Angels also brought veteran utilityman Ehire Adrianza aboard as a non-roster invitee last week, and he’ll have a chance to win a bench spot as a backup infielder.

Angels Sign Richie Martin To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Angels have agreed to a minor league deal with shortstop Richie Martin, according to the transactions log on Martin’s MLB.com player page.

Martin, 29, was selected 20th overall by the A’s in the 2015 draft out of the University of Florida. Martin struggled at the plate early in his professional career but seemed to enjoy a breakout season at the Double-A level in 2018, when he slashed .300/.368/.439 in 118 games at the level. Despite that strong performance and his pedigree as a former first-round pick, the A’s declined to protect Martin from the Rule 5 draft that winter and he was selected by the Orioles.

Baltimore retained Martin on their roster throughout the 2019 season and he appeared in 120 games for the club as a part-time player at shortstop. In 309 trips to the plate, Martin struggled badly with a .208/.260/.322 slash line, but the performance was enough to keep a spot on the 108-loss Orioles throughout the season, earning Baltimore the unrestricted rights to Martin’s services in future seasons. Unfortunately, Martin’s development was further thrown off course by the shortened 2020 campaign. Martin suffered a fractured wrist less than two weeks before Opening Day, ending his season before it began.

When Martin returned to action in 2021, he found a new role as a depth option for the Orioles and spent the majority of his time at the Triple-A level. He received just 138 plate appearances in the majors across the 2021 and ’22 seasons and slashed a paltry .219/.263/.289 across his 50 games with the big league club. In 2022, Martin’s numbers at the Triple-A level were respectable despite his weak big league performance as he posted a 96 wRC+ in 80 games at the level while playing solid defense at second base, shortstop, and all three outfield spots. That performance wasn’t enough for Martin to retain a spot on the Orioles’ big league roster, as they designated him for assignment in early September.

Upon electing minor league free agency that offseason, however, Martin did find interest from other teams on minor league pacts. The then-28-year-old infielder first signed with the Reds last winter but was released shortly before Opening Day and caught on with the Nationals back in April. Martin ultimately did not make an appearance in the majors and slashed just .217/.329/.314 at the Triple-A level. Now that he’s signed on in Anaheim, Martin provides the Halos with middle infield depth in the upper levels of the minors entering the 2024 campaign. With Luis Rengifo and Zach Neto expected to handle everyday duties in the middle infield for the Angels next year, Martin figures to compete with the likes of Kyren Paris and Michael Stefanic for a role on the club’s bench this spring and could act as non-roster depth if he fails to break camp with the club out of Spring Training.

Nationals Sign Nomar Mazara, Richie Martin To Minor League Contracts

By | at

The Nationals announced they’ve signed outfielder Nomar Mazara and infielder Richie Martin to minor league deals. Both players have been assigned to Triple-A Rochester.

Mazara has logged MLB time in seven consecutive seasons. The former top prospect never emerged as the middle-of-the-order bat that evaluators and Rangers fans had expected after he mashed through the minor leagues. Mazara had serviceable numbers as a rookie but didn’t take the anticipated step forward over the next few seasons. The left-handed hitter was a slightly below-average offensive player for four seasons before being dealt to the White Sox going into 2020.

Since leaving Arlington, Mazara has fallen on particularly hard times. He’s suited up for the White Sox, Tigers and Padres, logging between 100 and 200 plate appearances in each season. Going back to the start of 2020, Mazara owns a cumulative .235/.295/.324 line with only six home runs and a 25.7% strikeout rate in 501 plate appearances.

The 27-year-old (28 later this month) signed a minor league deal with the Orioles over the winter. He spent the spring with Baltimore, hitting .231/.286/.308 in 39 at-bats. After failing to crack the roster out of camp, he was released at the end of Spring Training. A couple weeks later, Mazara catches on with the Nationals — the sixth organization of his career.

Martin’s only MLB experience has come in Baltimore. Selected out of the Oakland organization with the first pick of the 2018 Rule 5 draft, he hit .208/.260/.322 over 309 plate appearances as a rookie. That enabled the Orioles to retain his long-term contractual rights but he only appeared in 50 more games for the club over the following three seasons.

The University of Florida product is a career .212/.261/.311 hitter over 170 big league games. Martin carries a .240/.336/.366 line at the Triple-A level. Despite the tepid offense, he’s drawn interest as a depth option for his defense throughout the infield. He’ll add some insurance behind the middle infield tandem of CJ Abrams and Luis García with Rochester.

Reds Sign Alex Young, Richie Martin To Minor League Deals

By | at

The Reds announced a pair of minor league deals today, one of them going to left-hander Alex Young and the other to infielder Richie Martin. Both players have received invitations to major league Spring Training.

Young, 29, was a second round pick of the Diamondbacks in the 2015 draft. He had a solid debut in the majors in 2019, throwing 83 1/3 innings with a 3.56 ERA. His 20.3% strikeout rate was below average but he limited walks to a 7.7% rate and got grounders at a 44.4% clip.

The next couple of seasons were a struggle, however, with the southpaw posting ERAs of 5.44 in 2020 and 6.58 the year after. The Diamondbacks put him on waivers in that latter campaign, with Young getting claimed by Cleveland. The Guardians then passed him through waivers in the offseason but he pitched well in the minors and got selected back to the roster in July. He only made one appearance for Cleveland before getting designated for assignment but the Giants liked him enough to send cash considerations to the Guards and put Young into 24 games.

Young got some good results with the Giants and finished the year with a 2.36 ERA over 26 2/3 innings. His 18.1% strikeout rate and 9.5% walk rate were both subpar but he got grounders at a strong 54.2% rate. Despite that performance, he was non-tendered by the Giants after the season.

Right now, the Reds have Reiver Sanmartin as their only lefty on the 40-man that’s projected to be in the bullpen. If Young can make his way onto the roster, he can provide them with some roster flexibility since he still has one option year remaining. He can also be retained for future seasons via arbitration since he has just under three years of MLB service time.

As for Martin, 28, he was a first round selection of the A’s in 2015. Prospect evaluators have long praised his defense, speed and athleticism but raised concerns about his work with the bat. The A’s weren’t satisfied enough with his progress to give him a roster spot after 2018, allowing the Orioles to nab him with the first pick in that year’s Rule 5 draft.

Martin stuck on the rebuilding O’s roster that year, allowing them to obtain full control over his rights. However, the concerns about his bat have come to fruition. Through 447 plate appearances in the majors thus far, he’s hit just .212/.261/.311 for a wRC+ of 50. He’s been better in the minors but still not very exciting. In 80 Triple-A games last year, he hit .250/.341/.380 for a wRC+ of 96, though he did steal 29 bases in that time. The O’s outrighted him off the roster in September and he elected free agency at season’s end.

For the Reds, there’s little harm in taking a flier and seeing if Martin can find another gear this year. They are currently set to send another glove-first option to their shortstop position in Kevin Newman. It’s expected that prospect Elly De La Cruz will eventually take over as the club’s shortstop of the future, though he’s only 21 and has yet to reach Triple-A. If Martin can take a step forward at the plate, there would be little preventing the Reds from giving him a shot in the big leagues. If he earns his way onto the roster, he still has one option year remaining and can be retained for a while via arbitration since he has between two and three years of major league service time.

34 Players Become Free Agents

By | at

The Wild Card round of the 2022 postseason begins today, but for the majority of teams and players, the offseason is now underway. With that will come plenty of roster formalities, including veteran players who’ve been outrighted off their respective teams’ rosters reaching minor league free agency. This week, there have been 34 such instances throughout the league, per the transactions log at MiLB.com.

None of these are a surprise, to be clear. Any player who is not on his team’s 40-man roster at season’s end but has three-plus years of Major League service time, multiple career outright assignments and/or seven-plus seasons in the minors has the right to elect free agency. Everyone in today’s group of players falls under that umbrella. The majority of the group will likely find minor league deals over the winter, although a few of the players in question could potentially find a big league deal as a bench piece or middle-inning reliever.

There will be several more waves of players of this ilk, and we’ll make note of them in bunches over the coming weeks as we await the launch of Major League free agency, when all unsigned players with at least six years of Major League service time will reach the open market. For now, here’s the first of what will likely be several waves of newly minted minor league free agents:

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Pitchers

Orioles Claim Anthony Castro, Designate Phoenix Sanders

By | at

The Orioles announced that right-hander Anthony Castro has been claimed off waivers from the Guardians, and subsequently optioned to Triple-A.  Right-hander Phoenix Sanders was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.  In addition, Baltimore outrighted infielder Richie Martin to Triple-A, as Martin cleared waivers after being designated earlier this week.

Castro has pitched in each of the last three MLB seasons, all with different teams — the Tigers in 2020, the Blue Jays in 2021, and the Guardians in 2022.  Cleveland acquired Castro from Toronto for Bradley Zimmer back in April, and Castro ended up posting a 7.43 ERA over 13 1/3 relief innings in the majors.

Within that small sample size, Castro issued 10 walks and allowed five home runs.  Control has been a persistent problem for Castro throughout his nine pro seasons, though at least at the minor league level, Castro has been able to mitigate a lot of those free passes due to some solid strikeout rates and grounder rates that routinely sit above the 50% threshold.  Over 596 1/3 minor league innings, Castro has a 3.47 ERA.

Between these decent numbers and a mid-90s fastball, Castro drew the Orioles’ interest, and he’ll now provide some extra bullpen depth for the surprise contenders.  He’ll take the place of Sanders, who was himself a waiver claim off the Rays roster less than two weeks ago.

Sanders has yet to see any Major League action with the Orioles, so his big league resume consists of the 14 2/3 innings he tossed for Tampa Bay earlier this season.  The 27-year-old’s first taste of the Show resulted in a very respectable 3.07 ERA.  Pitching mostly as a reliever during his career, Sanders posted a 3.46 ERA and a 29.55% strikeout rate over 260 innings in the minor leagues.

However, his work at Triple-A this year has been a struggle, with Sanders delivering only a 6.19 ERA over 32 frames.  Some back problems could be partially responsible, or perhaps Sanders had trouble adjusting to his first time being shuttled up and down between the minors and the Rays’ roster.  Given his past track record, it would seem possible that another club might grab Sanders in yet another waiver claim.

Orioles Select Jesus Aguilar, Designate Richie Martin For Assignment

By | at

The Orioles announced another series of roster moves Thursday, selecting the contract of first baseman Jesus Aguilar (whom they signed to a minor league deal yesterday), recalling top pitching prospect DL Hall from Triple-A Norfolk and designating infielder Richie Martin for assignment.

An All-Star when he hit 35 home runs for the 2018 Brewers, the now-32-year-old Aguilar was with the Marlins from 2020 up until a couple weeks ago, when Miami designated him for assignment and released him. Aguilar was a solid middle-of-the-order bat for the Fish in 2020-21 but has stumbled to a .236/.286/.388 batting line through 456 plate appearances this season — including a dismal .188/.246/.347 output since the All-Star break.

Ugly as those numbers are, Aguilar hit a combined .262/.338/.476 in just shy of 2000 plate appearances from 2017-21, so there’s a track record of solid productivity in his bat. The O’s will hope that he can return to form and provide a boost to a lineup that has struggled to score runs of late. If Aguilar can indeed recapture that form, he’ll help to replace the production of Trey Mancini, whom the Orioles shipped to Houston at the trade deadline despite being within striking distance of a Wild Card berth. Mancini hit .268/.347/.404 in 401 plate appearances this year prior to being traded.

Hall, the No. 21 overall pick back in 2017, made his big league debut earlier in 2022 but was tagged for five runs in 3 2/3 innings that day. He’s had an uneven season in the minors this year, pitching to a combined 4.48 ERA with a huge 36.6% strikeout rate but an ugly 13.4% walk rate in 84 1/3 innings between one start in High-A, one in Double-A and another 22 appearances (18 starts) in Triple-A.

Those shaky numbers notwithstanding, Hall still ranks among the game’s top 100 prospects due to a fastball that reaches triple digits and a collection of offspeed pitches that all have the potential to be plus offerings. This year’s 13.4% walk rate is an exact match with his career mark in the minors, however, which underscores the ongoing location issues he’s battled throughout his time as a professional.

Martin, 27, was the top pick in the 2018 Rule 5 Draft. A former first-rounder of the Athletics, Baltimore pounced on the opportunity to add him to the organization and hoped he could eventually carve out a role on the big league club. That hasn’t happened yet, however, as Martin floundered through a rookie season in which he couldn’t be optioned due to his Rule 5 status, hitting .208/.260/.322 in 2019. He’s only had 138 Major League plate appearances during that time, due in no small part to a fluke pair of broken wrists — both his left and his right — which obviously led to considerable time on the injured list.

Overall, Martin is a .212/.261/.311 hitter in 447 Major League plate appearances, and his .234/.333/.349 slash in 390 trips to the plate at the Triple-A level aren’t all that much better. It’s fair to wonder whether his development would’ve turned out differently were it not for that pair of fractures, but as a 27-year-old former prospect on a team that’s looking to turn the corner and emerge from a years-long rebuilding effort, Martin’s place on the 40-man roster has increasingly looked to be on shaky ground. He’ll be placed on outright waivers or released within a week’s time, as he’s ineligible to be traded at this point in the season.

Injured List Transactions: Urias, Holderman, Mayza

By | at

On yet another injury-filled day in baseball, let’s catch up on a few more comings and goings from the IL…

  • The Orioles placed infielder Ramon Urias on the 10-day injured list due to a left oblique strain, and selected Richie Martin’s contract from Triple-A.  With a pretty even split of playing time between shortstop, second base, and third base over his three MLB seasons, Urias has handled the majority of third base duty for the O’s this season, though he hasn’t matched his production from the 2021 season.  After posting a 115 wRC+ in 296 PA with Baltimore last year, Urias has a more modest 86 wRC+ and a .225/.273/.387 slash line in 188 PA this season.  Tyler Nevin figures to get most of the third base playing time with Urias out, and Martin (called up for his first Major League action of 2022) will likely spell Rougned Odor and Jorge Mateo at the two middle infield positions.
  • The Mets placed right-hander Colin Holderman on the 15-day injured list due to a right shoulder impingement.  The placement is retroactive to June 8, and righty Jake Reed has been called up from Triple-A to take Holderman’s spot in New York’s bullpen.  Pitching in his first MLB season, Holderman has an impressive 3.18 ERA, 30.4% strikeout rate, and 8.7% walk rate in his first 11 1/3 innings as a big leaguer.
  • Tim Mayza was activated off the Blue Jays’ 15-day injured list, as the left-hander returned to action after missing a little under four weeks due to forearm inflammation.  After throwing a scoreless two-thirds of an inning today against the Tigers, Mayza improved his ERA to 1.98 over 13 2/3 total frames this season.

Outrights: Scrubb, de Geus, Martin, Anderson

By | at

As a busy evening of contract tendering (and non-tendering) draws to a close, some players find themselves in a new position of being outrighted off their team’s 40-man roster. The following players cleared waivers and remain with one of their organization’s minor league affiliates:

  • Right-handed Astros reliever Andre Scrubb has been outrighted to Triple-A Sugar Land. Scrubb posted a shiny 1.90 ERA across 23 innings last season despite a huge 19.6% walk rate. His ERA regressed to 5.03 in a similar sample size of 19 innings, while his home run rate ballooned to nearly double the league average.
  • Arizona infielder Andrew Young and right-handed pitcher Brett de Geus  are ticketed for Double-A Amarillo and Triple-A Reno, respectively. Young demonstrated strong power numbers in limited action but struck out an untenable 43.3% of the time. The 24-year-old de Geus was a Rule 5 pick who was thrown into the fire by both the Rangers and Diamondbacks this season, but will return to the minors for additional seasoning after recently being designated for assignment.
  • Baltimore shortstop Richie Martin is headed to Triple-A Norfolk following a sub-replacement level season as an Oriole. The 26-year-old Martin has shown some offensive prowess at Double-A in the past, but for now he’ll look to establish himself as a plus hitter at Triple-A for the first time.
  • Blue Jays right-hander Shaun Anderson is on his way to Triple-A Buffalo after a busy season that saw him pitch for three big league teams, only to be claimed by Toronto in mid-November. Anderson didn’t have much go right in his 23 innings this year, but has consistently been capable of 3-something ERAs in the minor leagues as a starter or reliever.
Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top