Rays trade Martínez to Cubs, recall Arozarena
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.—The Tampa Bay Rays have traded first baseman/designated hitter José Martínez to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for two players to be named or cash considerations. To take Martínez’s place on the active roster, the Rays recalled outfielder Randy Arozarena from the alternate training site.
Martínez, 32, hit .239/.329/.388 (16-for-67) with two home runs and 10 RBI in 24 games for the Rays. He started 17 games (13 at designated hitter, four at first base), 11 of those against left-handed pitchers, but had started only four of the team’s last 14 games since August 14. Over parts of five seasons in the majors with the Rays and St. Louis Cardinals (2016-19), he is batting .294/.361/.455 (360-for-1,223) with 43 home runs and 182 RBI. Facing left-handed pitchers, he hit .229/.289/.429 (8-for-35) with one home run this season, compared to .331/.405/.570 (87-for-263) with 15 home runs from 2016-19 with St. Louis.
Arozarena (ah-row-sah-RAY-nah), 25, will be making his Rays debut after spending the entire season to date on the alternate training site COVID-19 Related Injured List. He is ranked by Baseball America as the No. 14 prospect in the Rays system. The right-handed hitter made his major league debut for the Cardinals last season, batting .300 (6-for-20) with one home run, two RBI and two stolen bases in 19 games (four starts, all in center field) over two stints. He appeared in five postseason games: four as a pinch-hitter and once as a defensive replacement. He also played for Double-A Springfield and Triple-A Memphis, batting .344/.431/.571 (118-for-343) with 15 home runs, 53 RBI and 17 stolen bases between the two levels. He played two seasons in the Cuban National Series and one season in the Mexican League before signing with the Cardinals on August 1, 2016. Over three minor league seasons (2017-19), he hit .292/.377/.477 (330-for-1,129) with 38 home runs and 151 RBI, including a selection to the World team for the 2018 Futures Game at Nationals Park.
Arozarena and Martínez were acquired together from the Cardinals along with a Competitive Balance Round A draft pick (shortstop Alika Williams) on January 9 in exchange for left-handed pitcher Matthew Liberatore, catcher Edgardo Rodriguez and a Competitive Balance Round B draft pick.