Former Cardinal pitcher Carlos Martinez was signed by the San Francisco Giants to a minor league contract before the season, but he was released on April 28th.
Now, the Boston Red Sox have signed him to a minor league contract with hopes that he can return to his old form. Maybe a change of scenery will help him do just that.
What makes this move the most interesting is the Boston Red Sox are the team that originally discovered him in the Dominican Republic at the age of 17. The Red Sox signed him as an international free agent in 2009 for only $140,000. The MLB ended up voiding his contract and suspended him for a year due to discrepancies over his name and birth date after the revelation that he was also known as Carlos Matias. His mother passed away when he was young and he was adopted by an uncle with the last name Matias. Carlos originally had plans to become a priest but changed his mind when he started getting the attention of MLB scouts. He was eventually cleared of wrongdoing when it was found that the inconsistencies were due to poor record keeping in Colinas del Sur. By then Craig Shipley with Red Sox decided not to pursue him any longer, the situation was bringing more attention to Martinez and more teams were lining up to bid for him. The Cardinals would sign him in 2010 for $1.5 million.
Martinez, 30, has 9 years of big-league experience. While with St. Louis, he went 62-52 with a 3.74 ERA in 139 starts. He appeared in 274 games, also earned 31 saves as a closer. His last couple of seasons were a struggle. In 2020, he allowed 22 runs in 20 innings, good for a 9.90 ERA. In 2021, he was 4-9 with a 6.23 ERA.
Martinez is expected to report to the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox, where he will make his 2022 debut.
