Guardians' Angel Martinez: Heading to bench Monday
Rotowire
Martinez is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Angels.
He'll hit the bench after he went 1-for-13 with an RBI and a run while starting all three games of the Guardians' series with the Twins over the weekend. With Martinez taking a seat, the Guardians will roll out an outfield of Steven Kwan, Daniel Schneemann and Chase DeLauter from left to right.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Taking seat Sunday
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Martinez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Athletics.
He'll head to the bench for the second time in the series while the Guardians go with Steven Kwan, Petey Halpin and Chase DeLauter as their starting outfield from left to right. During his lone start in Sacramento, Martinez went 3-for-6 with a run scored in Saturday's 14-6 win, lifting his season average up to .275.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Playing time trending back up
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Martinez will start in left field and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Rays, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.
Martinez appeared to be moving into more of a part-time role following a week-long stretch from April 15 through 22 in which he went just 3-for-19 at the dish, but he's since settled back in as an everyday player for the Guardians. The switch-hitting outfielder will stick in the lineup for a sixth straight contest after producing two home runs and two doubles and chipping in a stolen base over his previous five starts.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Bats leadoff
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Martinez hit atop the order and went 1-for-4 in Saturday's 5-3 loss to Toronto.
Martinez was originally slated to bat fifth and play left field, but he was moved to center field and batted leadoff when Steven Kwan (neck) was scratched from the lineup. Martinez's stock has risen dramatically early in 2026, as he's slashing .282/.325/.526 with five home runs, 14 RBI, five steals and 12 runs over 25 games.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Homers in win
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Martinez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Tuesday's 8-5 win over the Astros.
Martinez lofted a home run in the second inning and later scored as part of the Guardians' six-run eighth inning. His playing time has taken a slight hit since George Valera was activated off the injured list, but Martinez's .275/.324/.788 slash line with three home runs and 10 RBI over 71 plate appearances (22 games) keeps him relevant.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Playing time trending down
Rotowire
Martinez is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Astros.
While Martinez is still holding down a respectable .262 batting average for the season, it's fallen more than 50 points over the past week while he's gone just 2-for-18 at the dish during that time. The Guardians will likely continue to make room for Martinez in the lineup against left-handed pitching, but his playing time versus right-handers has been trending down of late. He'll head to the bench Monday for the third time in the Guardians' last five matchups with righties.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Exiting starting nine
Rotowire
Martinez is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game in St. Louis.
Martinez had made seven consecutive starts, but he'll get a breather for Wednesday's series finale. George Valera will play left field and occupy the fifth slot in the batting order for the Guardians.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Stays hot in win
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Martinez went 2-for-5 with a double, two runs scored and a stolen base in Saturday's 6-0 win over Atlanta.
Martinez caught fire from the sixth inning on, finishing with two hits, two runs scored and a stolen base. The 24-year-old has been red hot, posting four straight multi-hit games and swiping a bag in three consecutive contests. On the season, he's slashing .342/.419/.500 across 44 plate appearances with one home run, six RBI, seven runs scored and four steals.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Drives home two runs Friday
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Martinez went 2-for-4 with a two-run single and a run scored during Cleveland's 11-5 loss to Atlanta on Friday.
Martinez helped cut the Guardians' deficit to four runs thanks to his single in the eighth inning that brought Juan Brito and Rhys Hoskins home. Martinez went 3-for-21 (.143) through his first nine games of the regular season, but he has logged at least two hits in each of his last three starts and has gone 8-for-12 (.667) with one home run, six RBI and two runs scored over that span.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Big day in big win
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Martinez went 4-for-5 with a double, a grand slam and a stolen base in Wednesday's 10-2 rout of the Royals.
Getting the start in left field and batting second against southpaw Cole Ragans (thumb), Martinez's big blow came in the eighth inning, when he capped a five-run frame by dropping a slider from right-hander Steven Cruz into the right-field seats with the bases loaded. It was Martinez's first homer and first RBI of the year, and after a 3-for-21 (.143) start to the season he's racked up six hits in the last two contests.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Playing time trending up
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Martinez will start in right field and bat second in Wednesday's contest versus the Dodgers.
Martinez was out of the lineup for the first two games and three of the first four tilts of the season, but since then he's started three in a row and four of five contests. The switch hitter is 3-for-13 with one stolen base and a 0:5 BB:K in the early going this season.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Makes season debut
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Martinez started in left field and went 1-for-4 with a double in Saturday's 6-5 extra-inning win over Seattle.
Martinez parlayed a productive spring (1.196 OPS) into an Opening Day roster spot but not a role as a lineup regular. The Guardians have a few outfield prospects on the roster, including the red-hot Chase DeLauter (four HR), so Martinez may be limited to one or two starts per week. When George Valera (calf) is ready to rejoin the team, that could further cap opportunities for Martinez, or even lead to a demotion to the minors.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Having strong camp
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Martinez has hit in five consecutive games and is 9-for-21 (.429) with two solo home runs and five doubles through nine Cactus League games.
Martinez is expected to make the Opening Day roster and is included on Cleveland's latest roster projection compiled by Zack Meisel of The Athletic. The Guardians are having him focus on center field after Martinez bounced between the outfield and second base in 2025. He's expected to serve in a depth role.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Focused on outfield
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Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said Martinez will primarily focus on the outfield, particularly center field, during spring action, Joe Noga of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Martinez bounced between second base and the outfield in 2025 and will still be a versatile asset going forward, but the plan during Cactus League games is for him to be out on the grass rather than the dirt. All three of Martinez's spring appearances have come in center field, including Thursday's contest against Seattle in which he belted a double and drew a walk. There are a lot of moving parts in the Guardians' outfield, but Martinez could still land a regular gig in center.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Exiting starting nine
Rotowire
Martinez is not in the lineup for Friday's game versus the Rangers.
Martinez will begin Friday's festivities on the bench after starting three of the previous four games. It will be Daniel Schneemann in center field and batting seventh for the Guardians.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Lashes two hits in loss
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Martinez started in center field and went 2-for-5 with a double and a run scored in Tuesday's 6-5 loss to Arizona.
Martinez, who made his second start in the last five games, has experienced a dip in playing time due to the recent promotion of prospect C.J. Kayfus. Martinez's sputtering bat may limit his plate appearances further going forward. Tuesday's multi-hit effort was his first since July 22; he entered the game with a .111/.211/.175 slash line along with two extra-base hits and two RBI over the previous 20 contests.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Homers in consecutive at-bats
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Martinez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Astros.
Martinez, who finished Tuesday's extra-inning win with a 10th-inning grand slam, homered in his first at-bat Wednesday. The blast extended a hit streak to six games, during which Martinez is 7-for-23 (.304) with five extra-base hits and five RBI. With Lane Thomas (foot) and Gabriel Arias (ankle) both on the 10-day injured list, Martinez has paths to playing time in center field and second base.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Blasts first career grand slam
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Martinez went 1-for-4 with a grand slam and a walk in Tuesday's 10-6 extra-inning win over Houston.
Martinez smacked his first career grand slam in the 10th frame en route to setting a career high in RBI. The switch-hitting center fielder extended his hitting streak to five games and should see a bump in playing time with Lane Thomas (foot) on the injured list, but it's still been a tough season for him at the plate overall. Through 264 plate appearances, Martinez is slashing .238/.264/.371 with six home runs, 13 doubles, 30 RBI and five stolen bases.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Starts in center field
Rotowire
Martinez started in center field and went 2-for-4 with two doubles in Sunday's 7-2 extra-inning loss to the Tigers .
Martinez moved to center field after the Guardians placed Lane Thomas (plantar fasciitis) on the 10-day injured list, the second time he's landed on the IL with the same injury. Martinez has hit safely in five of his last six starts, but that's done little to halt the team's losing streak, which reached 10 games Sunday. Like several others in the lineup not named Steven Kwan or Jose Ramirez, Martinez is providing little impact. Going back to June 5, he's batting .210 (17-for-81) with a .296 slugging percentage and four RBI over 26 contests.
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Guardians' Angel Martinez: Swipes fifth bag
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Martinez went 0-for-2 with a steal, a walk and a run scored in Sunday's 3-0 victory over the Athletics.
The 23-year-old switch hitter made his fourth consecutive start at the keystone and stole second off Athletics starter JP Sears in the second frame. Despite the recent run of playing time, Martinez has struggled in June, batting just .190 (12-for-63) with two homers, seven runs scored, five RBI and an ugly 18:2 K:BB across 17 games. Overall, he is now slashing .239/.261/.368 while going a perfect 5-for-5 on steal attempts through 220 plate appearances in 60 games.
