Jose Martinez Returns to the NL Central
Chicago, with few spare bats to be had from their increasingly thin upper minors, was one of the many National League teams that rolled into the season without a clear full-time designated hitter option. The team has generally used the position to either rest Willson Contreras without losing his bat or to get Victor Caratini‘s lumber in the lineup. Larger active rosters in 2020 have facilitated this, giving the Cubs room to carry Josh Phegley as the “break in case of emergency” catcher; teams are usually quite resistant to having their backup catcher as the designated hitter due to the possibility of injury.
I find it unlikely Martinez is a Cub in 2021, as there’s a high chance that he’s simply non-tendered this winter. The late-bloomer getting a full-time job at 28 is a great story, but he’s going to be 32 for the 2021 season and aging part-time DHs haven’t been attracting a ton of interest on the market of late. If the designated hitter persists after 2020, the Cubs can likely do better given a full, normal offseason.
The lack of defensive versatility made Martinez an awkward fit for the Rays given that team’s proclivity for role players who can play anywhere on the field. The trade that brought him to Tampa/St. Pete last season was always more about Randy Arozarena, with Martinez more of nice option to have as the team assembled their 2020 roster. There’s been no indication who the players to be named later might be as of yet, but I don’t expect either to be a significant prospect. This trade opens the team to more easily getting Yandy Diaz and Yoshi Tsutsugo in the lineup simultaneously, and if the Rays need a lefty masher at designated hitter, both Mike Brosseau and Hunter Renfroe are hanging around.
Martinez doesn’t dramatically improve the Cubs, but he’s a nice role player addition when looking ahead to the playoffs.