CLEVELAND -- With a better showing offensively by the Guardians in Game 1 of the AL Division Series on Saturday, we may have recounted the double play Angel Martínez started in the sixth inning with a leaping catch in left field in a different light.
Cleveland getting shut out in the opener rendered that possibility moot, though Martínez still gave us a look at how he can impact a game. Going forward this series, the dynamic 24-year-old’s biggest impact may come with his bat.
Martínez had a career year this season and emerged as a bit of an unsung hero for the American League Central champion Guardians. He was a key power presence in a lineup that desperately needed one, amid an injury-impacted year by superstar and fellow switch-hitter José Ramírez.
Now, facing a White Sox team that finished the regular season fifth in MLB in home runs, Martínez looms as a potential X-factor for the Guardians. Cleveland isn’t built on slug, but you can’t live without it in October.
Martínez’s ability to change a game with one swing could loom large.
“This year, there have been a lot of ups and downs for me,” Martínez said. “I've been getting hurt a lot. That hasn’t really happened throughout my career. But we’re here in the playoffs, doing our thing. I’m pretty happy with how everything developed.”
It’s interesting to look back on Martínez’s 2026 season. He earned one of the Guardians’ final Opening Day roster spots, after a spirited competition in a crowded outfield mix in Spring Training. He dealt with injury setbacks, including a non-displaced left foot fracture that sidelined him for six weeks in June and July.
Martínez nonetheless hit 18 home runs and had a .755 OPS in 416 plate appearances over 114 games, after he hit 11 home runs with a .628 OPS in 484 plate appearances over 139 games in 2025.
“He's had an excellent year. You wish you could see where his numbers would be without the injury,” manager Stephen Vogt said. “He's really brought a good switch-hitter in the middle of that order to protect some guys, and he’s really been a threat from both sides of the plate.
“I’m really proud of Angel and the year he's put together. I’m looking forward to watching him for a few more weeks.”
Martínez was much better right-handed in 2025 (.792 OPS in 169 plate appearances) than left-handed (.545 in 315 PAs), and Vogt said the Guardians challenged him after last season to work to improve from the latter.
This season, Martínez’s production was more equitable. He had an .831 OPS right-handed (152 PAs) and a .711 OPS left-handed (264 PAs).
“I’m just trusting in God’s plan,” Martínez said. “I feel like the power and my abilities have always been there. Just the mental side of the game sometimes got to me, like trying to control things that I cannot control. Staying away from that and just trusting my talents, I think that's the biggest difference between this year and the other years.”
Martínez didn’t want to think too far ahead, but noted he hopes to emerge as a player who can hit 30 home runs every season. For now, he can boost the Guardians by hitting for power against an unorthodox pitching plan the White Sox are deploying in this series.
Chicago has embraced using openers in the postseason and having starting pitchers toss bulk innings in relief. Lefty Hagen Smith pitched 2 2/3 innings as an opener in Game 1. Lefty Anthony Kay will open for right-hander Sean Burke in Game 2.
The Guardians have 14 position players on their ALDS roster, which includes six left-handed hitters, three righties and five switch-hitters, three of whom (Martínez, Ramírez and Brayan Rocchio) were in the starting lineup in Game 1. Cleveland could trot out a similar lineup for Game 2.
The Guardians needed more production across a lineup that had three hits and five walks in Game 1. But Martínez is potentially one strong counter to Chicago's plans. He’s already shown what he can do this season. Martínez went 4-for-12 with a double, a grand slam and six RBIs in three games against the White Sox in the regular season.
His biggest moment yet may await.
“On paper, he’s the last guy in Spring Training, we'll see what kind of role he has, and he's propelled us into these playoffs,” outfielder Steven Kwan said. “His righty bat off the lefties has been huge. Great defense in left. A calming presence.
“It just shows in baseball, anybody can step up if you get the opportunity.”