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Firsthand Report - Emerson Martinez

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Hey y'all, let me introduce Connor Pierce (connorkp23 on LSB and @connorkpierce on Twitter) who has been seen around here writing quality Spring Training blurbs in the comments, and more recently has been putting in time behind home plate at Frisco refining his eye for evaluation. It's clear that he's spent plenty of time in his life reading about, watching, and playing baseball as in our discussions his curiosity and understanding for the game come through. Connor recently went to a game on his own to catch Emerson Martinez, after an early seasons K surge, to see what kind of tools that Martinez is packing. What follows is Connor's very own piece on what he saw out there and what that means for Emmerson Martinez's future prospects as a baseball player.


I got my first look at RHP Emerson Martinez during the Frisco Roughriders’ game this past Thursday against the Midland Rockhounds. Martinez put together a solid performance, striking out 10, walking 1, scattering 7 hits, and allowing 2 runs over 5 innings and 92 pitches.

Martinez, a 24-year-old righty who’s listed at 6’ 0’’ 190lbs but looks a little bit thicker than that, is currently pitching his first full campaign at the AA level. He doesn’t carry much bad weight and he has a maxed-out frame. He doesn’t possess elite traditional athleticism, but it doesn’t hold him back and he has good body control on the mound.

Martinez works with a four-pitch mix including a fastball, slider, changeup, and curveball. He has a methodical delivery from a high three-quarters arm slot out of a modified windup. Martinez consistently locates his repertoire within the zone, but he presently demonstrates control over command. He sits 90-92 with a straight fastball and occasionally touches 94. He has good fastball control and when he misses it’s generally to the arm side and up. Martinez also throws a changeup at 80-81 which features consistent tumble and slight arm-side fade making it a solid average secondary offering. He reliably keeps the pitch down, and when he misses it’s below the zone. Additionally, he mixes in a slider ranging from 83-85. The slider has vertical depth and flashed solid horizontal action, but he currently has inconsistent feel for the pitch. The pitch needs some refinement, but it can be an above-average pitch in the future. Martinez threw a few fringy curveballs as well at 81-83, but the pitch lacks the depth or sharpness to profile as an average offering in the future.

A quick worker, Martinez predominantly relies on his fastball and changeup early in counts. He’s more effective and misses bats when employing his changeup early in counts, but when he relies on his fastball hitters are able to sit on the pitch and drive it when he doesn’t locate it down in the zone. Later in counts, Martinez features his slider along with his changeup, and the slider is reliably effective when he keeps it down and away from opposing right-handed hitters, inducing plenty of swings and misses. Even when facing adversity Martinez remains very composed on the mound, responding well to offensive pressure and mistakes from his defense.

Martinez currently profiles as a swingman who can eat innings when needed or in middle relief out the bullpen, where the utilization of his full arsenal in short bursts without the need to save stamina would make him effective in that role. He should find success if he can sequence and locate his fastball and two primary secondary offerings to keep major league hitters off balance. That being said his lack of a true put-away pitch among his arsenal and present control over command could hold him back and prevent him from ever carving out a permanent major league role. However, if Martinez takes a step forward in command or develops more consistent feel for his slider, he could profile as a #5 starter or in a more high-leverage relief role.