It was nearly a quarter-century ago, just a five-hour drive away, when Alex Rodriguez and agent Scott Boras shocked the baseball world by signing the richest contract in the sport’s history with the Texas Rangers.

Martinez performed excellently in a swing role in his only year in Cincinnati and thus declined his 2025 player option. He covered 142 innings while making 16 starts, maintaining a 1.02 WHIP and walking barely one batter per nine innings. Well-suited to the versatility modern clubs prefer out of their best arms.