The Rangers said on Friday that they had sent minor league right-hander Tyler Owens to the Braves in exchange for outfielder J.P. Martinez. In order to complete yesterday’s rumored acquisition of David Robertson, Texas needed to clear a space on its 40-man roster. Martinez’s trade of 27 years old appears to clear the path for that signing to become official. On Friday, Robertson is going to Texas for his physical.
Martinez joined the Rangers in 2023 and made his major league debut, playing in 17 games and racking up 44 plate appearances before the end of the season. During that cup of coffee, he hit.225/.250/.325 with a home run, a double, and an ugly 16 strikeouts (36.4%). His performance in 353 plate appearances across 77 Triple-A games was significantly more encouraging. Along with 14 long balls, 21 doubles, four triples, and a whopping 38 stolen bases in 42 attempts, the left-handed Martinez slashed.298/.418/.543. He didn’t experience the small-sample strikeout problems that beset him in the majors in Triple-A; in Round Rock, he walked at a 15.6% clip and fanned at a much more tolerable 22.9% rate.
It’s worth noting that Martinez was older and more experienced than much of his competition in Triple-A. In addition to five minor league seasons, he played five years in the Cuban National Series (Cuba’s top professional league) and spent two seasons in the independent Canadian-American Association. Be that as it may, it was still an impressive showing and far and away his most productive minor league performance to date since signing with the Rangers organization in March of 2018. Martinez at one point ranked second among Rangers prospects, per Baseball America, but he dropped to 27th the following year (2020) and has been off the radar on major prospect rankings for the organization since.
With Ronald Acuna Jr. in right field, Michael Harris II in center, and Jarred Kelenic in left field, the Braves have a full outfield. Martinez might have competition for a bench place early in the season from veteran Jordan Luplow and non-roster starter Forrest Wall. Both Wall (three) and Martinez (two) have minor league option years left, so either may be sent down without having to be placed on waivers first. Luplow needs to secure employment this spring as he is not included in the 40-man roster.
Turning to the Rangers’ side of the swap, they’ll add a 23-year-old righty who was the Braves’ 13th-round pick in the 2019 draft. Owens split the 2023 season between High-A and Double-A, working to a combined 3.03 ERA in 65 1/3 innings split between the bullpen and the rotation. He fanned 23.4% of his opponents against a 7.7% walk rate, although both his strikeout and walk rate took a turn for the worse when moving up to the Double-A level from High-A.
Listed at 5’10” and 185 pounds, Owens is undersized but nonetheless elevated his prospect status with his 2023 performance. Baseball America ranked him 22nd among Braves prospects this offseason, touting a plus fastball that reaches 98 mph and befuddles hitters thanks in part to a lower-than-usual release angle. BA’s report also notes that Owens has a slider with strong spin rates which could be a plus pitch if he can locate it more consistently — which he’s struggled to do at this point in his career.
Owens gives the Rangers a potential bullpen arm who could be in the big leagues at some point in 2024 or in 2025, although it should also be noted that all 29 other teams passed on selecting him in December’s Rule 5 Draft despite being eligible.
The Rangers have more outfield depth in the upper minors and on their big league bench than the Braves, who have a stacked bullpen that left Owens with little chance of breaking through in the immediate term (barring multiple injuries on the MLB roster). Martinez is more interesting than the standard player who might be designated for assignment to make room for a free agent signing, and the Braves accordingly sent a relatively near-term bullpen prospect who seemingly has a chance to make it in the big leagues. Both clubs dealt from positions of depth and addressed areas of need; on the whole, it seems like a sensible swap for both parties.
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