PEORIA, Ariz. — The plan was for a quiet birthday. Perhaps dinner with fellow Cuban and teammate Guillermo Heredia and a few others. Beyond that, Leonys Martin had nothing special lined up for his 29th birthday on Friday.
With his wife and two children still back in Miami, there wasn’t much of a reason for him to have a big celebration. The highlight was likely going to be a Facetime conversation with them after the Mariners’ Cactus League game against his old team – the Texas Rangers.
“Really I planned to celebrate by myself,” he said.
But manager Scott Servais had other plans.