Michael Gabriel Martínez Tiburcio (born September 16, 1982) is a Dominican professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

utility player In sports, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. Sports in which the term is often used include association football, basketball, American football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, softball, ice hockey, and water ...

who is a free agent. He has previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

, and

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...

. In a seven-year MLB career, Martínez played every position except

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

and

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

Professional career

Washington Nationals

Martínez began in the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

organization, commencing his professional career in 2006. That year, he played for the

Vermont Lake Monsters The Vermont Lake Monsters are a collegiate summer baseball team located in Burlington, Vermont, United States, who were founded in 1994 as the Vermont Expos. They were members of Minor League Baseball, in the New York–Penn League (NYPL), ...

, Savannah Sand Gnats and

Potomac Nationals The Potomac Nationals were a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League. They were situated in Woodbridge, Virginia, and played their home games at Northwest Federal Field at Pfitzner Stadium. After the 2019 season, the team relocated to ...

, hitting a combined .265 with 11 stolen bases in 82 games. In 2007, he played for the

Hagerstown Suns The Hagerstown Suns were a Minor League Baseball team based in Hagerstown, Maryland. They were a member of the South Atlantic League and, from 2007 through 2020, were the Class A (baseball), Class A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They pl ...

and hit .250 with 13 stolen bases in 116 games. He played for the Potomac Nationals and

Harrisburg Senators The Harrisburg Senators are a Minor League Baseball team who play in the Eastern League, and are the Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. The team is based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at FNB Field on Cit ...

in 2009, posting a .259 batting average with 10 steals. In 2010, he played for the Senators and

Syracuse Chiefs Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

, hitting a combined .272 with 11 home runs and 23 stolen bases.

Philadelphia Phillies

The

selected Martínez from the Nationals after the 2011 season as a

Rule 5 draft The Rule 5 draft is a Major League Baseball (MLB) player draft that occurs each year in December, at the annual Winter Meeting of general managers. The Rule 5 draft aims to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor lea ...

pick. He made the Phillies'

Opening Day Opening Day is the day on which professional baseball leagues begin their regular season. For Major League Baseball (MLB) and most of the American minor leagues, this day typically falls during the first week of April, although in recent year ...

roster as a reserve player. He made his major league debut on April 3 against the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

and recorded his first major league hit and RBI. He hit his first major league career home run on July 17 against the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

. He spent the season acting as a utility infielder and outfielder, recording a .196 batting average with 3 home runs and 24 RBI in 89 games. Due to his remaining on the club's roster for the entire regular season, he remained in the organization thereafter per Rule 5 regulations. Martínez opened the 2012 year on the Disabled List due to a broken foot suffered during Spring Training. He joined the

Lehigh Valley IronPigs The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and they are named in reference to pig iron, used ...

, the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate, in early June. After playing only one game with Lehigh Valley, Martínez returned to the Phillies' 25-man roster following an injury to second baseman Freddy Galvis. On June 27, Martínez was optioned to Lehigh Valley to make room for

Chase Utley Chase Cameron Utley (born December 17, 1978) is an American former professional baseball second baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 16 seasons, primarily for the Philadelphia Phillies. He also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers. ...

. Martínez was called up again when Mike Fontenot was designated for assignment. Martínez began 2013 at Triple-A, but his contract was purchased on May 24 because Chase Utley was placed on the 15-day DL. He was designated for assignment on June 22, and outrighted off the roster on October 3. He elected free agency on October 8. In 29 games for the Phillies in 2013, he hit .175 with 3 RBI.

Pittsburgh Pirates

On December 18, 2013, the

signed Martínez to a minor league deal. His contract was selected from the Triple-A

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory ...

on June 12, and he was optioned back to Indianapolis on August 19. He was designated for assignment on September 2, 2014, when the contract of Chase d'Arnaud was selected and was added to the 40-man roster. Martínez elected free agency in October 2014.

Cleveland Indians

Martínez signed a minor league deal with the

on February 11, 2015. On April 9, 2015, he was assigned to the Triple-A

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, merch ...

. The Indians purchased his contract from Columbus on September 4, 2015, and added him to the major-league roster. On July 2, 2016, Martínez was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

to make room on the 25-man roster for Shawn Morimando after a 19-inning game the day before that exhausted the entire bullpen. He hit .283 in 60 at-bats for the Indians.

Boston Red Sox

On July 8, 2016, Martínez was traded to the

in exchange for cash. During his time with Boston, Martínez hit .167/.286/.167 with no home runs and no RBI in 6 at bats. Martínez appeared in 4 games and starting in one game, playing in

right field A right fielder, abbreviated RF, is the outfielder in baseball or softball who plays defense in right field. Right field is the area of the outfield to the right of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In t ...

Cleveland Indians (second stint)

After being designated for assignment by the Red Sox on August 2, 2016, Martínez was claimed by the

off waivers on August 4. Martínez hit into the final out to

Kris Bryant Kristopher Lee Bryant (born January 4, 1992), nicknamed "KB", is an American professional baseball designated hitter, outfielder, and third baseman for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the ...

in the Indians' Game 7 loss in the

2016 World Series The 2016 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2016 season. The 112th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Chicago Cubs and the American Leag ...

to the Chicago Cubs, which was their first World Series championship in 108 years. On November 23, 2016, he was outrighted to Triple-A. He signed a new minor league contract with the Indians organization on December 1. The Indians purchased Martínez's contract on April 2, 2017, adding him to their 2017 opening day roster. Martínez was designated for assignment on May 14. He elected free agency following the season on November 6.

Tampa Bay Rays

On May 18, 2017, the

acquired Martínez in exchange for cash considerations. He was designated for assignment on June 19 to create room for Trevor Plouffe. He became a free agent on June 23, 2017.

Cleveland Indians (third stint)

Martínez signed a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians on June 25, 2017. He elected free agency on November 6, 2017. On December 2, 2017, Martínez re–signed with the Indians on a new minor league contract that included an invitation to

spring training Spring training, also called spring camp, is the preseason of the Summer Professional Baseball Leagues, such as Major League Baseball (MLB), and it is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spri ...

. However, he did not appear for the organization in 2018 and elected free agency following the season on November 2, 2018.

Lancaster Barnstormers

On March 11, 2019, Martínez signed with the

Lancaster Barnstormers The Lancaster Stormers (formerly known as the Lancaster Barnstormers) is an American professional baseball team based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It is a member of the North Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, a "partner l ...

of the independent

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, and the headquarters are l ...

. He became a free agent after the 2020 season.

High Point Rockers

On March 9, 2021, Martínez signed with the High Point Rockers of the

. He made 51 appearances for High Point, batting .287/.354/.422 with 4 home runs and 30 RBI. He became a free agent following the season. On February 8, 2022, Martínez re-signed with the Rockers for the 2022 season. He played in 75 games for High Point, hitting .304/.370/.424 with 5 home runs, 35 RBI, and 6 stolen bases. He became a free agent following the 2022 season. On February 15, 2023, Martínez re-signed with the Rockers for the 2023 season. In 89 games for the club, he hit .249/.288/.357 with four home runs and 62 RBI. On April 10, 2024, Martínez re–signed with High Point for a fourth consecutive season. In 34 appearances for the team, he slashed .279/.315/.412 with two home runs and 19 RBI. On January 6, 2025, Martínez re-signed with the Rockers for a fifth consecutive season.

Personal life

Martínez's cousin Ángel Martínez currently plays in

for the

Cleveland Guardians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...

. His uncle, Sandy Martínez, played in MLB from 1995 to 2004.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez, Michael 1982 births Living people Boston Red Sox players Clearwater Threshers players Cleveland Indians players Columbus Clippers players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in the United States Estrellas Orientales players Hagerstown Suns players Harrisburg Senators players High Point Rockers players Indianapolis Indians players Lancaster Barnstormers players Lehigh Valley IronPigs players Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic 21st-century Dominican Republic sportsmen Philadelphia Phillies players Pittsburgh Pirates players Potomac Nationals players Savannah Sand Gnats players Syracuse Chiefs players Tampa Bay Rays players Vermont Lake Monsters players Yaquis de Obregón players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Mexico Baseball players from Santo Domingo Adelaide Giants players Dominican Republic expatriate baseball players in Australia