Both these moves by the Texas Rangers are low risk/high reward type of deals. 31-year-old Chris Martin hasn’t pitched in the MLB since 2015. He went 0-2 with a 1.19 ERA in 40 games with one save last season with the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan.
Much like Tony Barnette, the Rangers believe Martin can come over from Japan and be successful in the MLB. Both pitchers were closers during part of their time in Japan, and give the Rangers extra experience in that role.
It’s a two-year $4 million deal for Martin which is cheap for how well he pitched the last two seasons in Japan.