So, with the Rangers heading for the playoffs and the minor league season mostly over, we haven’t really been thinking about or paying attention to what’s been going on down on the farm. Only High Desert is still playing, and they might as well be in a black hole, what with playing on the West Coast with no video or anything.
Still, High Desert is in the playoffs, and in Game 2 of their series with Visalia, Brett Martin pitched one of the best games any minor leaguer has pitched this season. The 21 year old lefty threw 7 no-hit innings, striking out 15 batters, with the only baserunners coming via a walk and a pair of errors.
Martin was pulled after 7 IP at 91 pitches — his season high is 92 pitches -- and Scott Lucas counted 41 swings on those 91 pitches, 20 of them swinging strikes. In the post-game story, Martin said he was “speechless” over his outing, though he said he was very relaxed throughout the game.
Martin was the Rangers’ 4th round pick in 2014 out of Walters State Community College, and he’s a big (6’4”) guy who still has a lot of work to do, but who offers a lot of promise once it all clicks. Tepid said last night on Twitter his top pitching prospects in the Rangers system are Yohander Mendez, Ariel Jurado and Brett Martin, in that order.
2016 was a rough season for Martin, who returned to Hickory to start the year, scuffled some, and then missed a couple of months with a UCL issue. Hopefully, this outing is a sign of what is to come from Martin in 2017.