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Manager Aaron Boone of the New York Yankees
Yankees 24-year-old catching prospect Omar Martinez had already been in the New York farm system for six years when he received an invitation to spring training before the 2025 season. Martinez quickly demanded attention from the manager Aaron Boone and the Yankees’ organization when he blasted a home run off ace Gerrit Cole, in the 2023 Cy Young Award winner’s first live-batter throwing session of the spring.
Apparently, it wasn’t enough. Martinez spent his seventh season in the minor leagues and when it was over, made it clear he was done toiling on the Yankees farm. On November 6, Martinez exercised his right to choose free agency, according to the transactions section of his MiLB.com page.
Minor leaguers must meet certain conditions to gain the right to become free agents. One of those conditions applies to players who have spent at least six years in the minor leagues without ever being added to a 40-man roster. Martinez met that requirement, and cut his ties to the Yankees in hopes of finding another team that may give him a better chance.
Martinez Finds New Home on West Coast
On November 13, after just over one week as a free agent, Martinez — who was signed out of Venezuela by the Yankees in 2018 in a largely unheralded acquisition — found his new baseball home, on the other side of the country.
The Los Angeles Angels signed Martinez to a minor league contract. Though the signing took place on November 13, the transaction was not publicly posted until November 28.
“Martinez’s journey in professional baseball has been a rollercoaster. Since his initial signing with the Yankees, he has moved through different levels of the minor leagues, facing high-caliber pitchers and perfecting his defensive game,” wrote Alejandra Razo of the baseball news site ALBat.com, at the time Martinez was signed.
“Time will tell if this bet by the Angels will pay off, but one thing is certain: Omar Martinez is ready to give it his all on the diamond. With his youth and determination, he has all the tools to succeed in professional baseball,” Razo continued.
Catcher Has Demonstrated Power
Through his seven minor league seasons, Martinez has belted 54 home runs to go with 59 doubles and even five triples. The catcher has managed only a .239 batting average and .764 OPS, however, so from the offensive side of the ball, his capability to hit for power stands as his most distinctive characteristic.
“Martinez is a thick-built catcher with tree trunks for legs (seriously, his legs are that of a muscle hamster),” wrote SB Nation Yankees correspondent Smith Brickner in a scouting report on Martinez last year. “His calling card is his raw power, which based on visual and analytical evaluations is clearly above average.”
“Martinez isn’t selling out for power, though,” Brickner continued. “His barrel stays in the zone for a surprising amount of time given how vertically-oriented his swing is.”
Martinez Gets Chance to Impress Angels
Heading into the 2024 season, Martinez was ranked 48th on a list of the Yankees’ top 50 prospects by Prospects 1500.
The Angels assigned Martinez to Triple-A Salt Lake Bees to start the 2026 season, though minor league free agent contracts generally come with invitations to major league spring training.
Though he is not expected to compete with Logan O’Hoppe or Travis d’Arnaud for a big league catcher’s job, Martinez will likely get at least an opportunity to impress his new organization at Tempe Diablo Stadium in Arizona when pitchers and catchers report in February.
Jonathan Vankin JONATHAN VANKIN is an award-winning journalist and writer who now covers baseball and other sports for Heavy.com. He twice won New England Press Association awards for sports feature writing. He was a sports editor and writer at The Daily Yomiuri in Tokyo, Japan, covering Japan Pro Baseball, boxing, sumo and other sports. More about Jonathan Vankin
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