Red Sox acquire utilityman Michael Martinez, designate Sean Coyle

The Boston Red Sox made another move to help their infield, acquiring infielder Michael Martinez from the Cleveland Indians for cash considerations.

The Red Sox made another move to shore up their infield depth with the acquisition of Michael Martinez, who had been designated for assignment on July 2 by the Cleveland Indians.

To free up the 40-man roster spot, the Red Sox designated struggling infielder Sean Coyle, who has gone through a terrible season. This was a straight cash deal for Martinez, who has split time between the minors and majors this season.

Martinez’ DFA may have been a result of the Indians’ 19 inning game on July 1. The next day he was designated so the team could bring up a pitcher to help the depleted bullpen. Martinez was slashing .283/.309/.380 in 63 at-bats at the time of his DFA, so perhaps the team thought they might be able to sneak him through waivers and bring him back after the ten days expired. His slash numbers are the best of his career. Martinez had started only one game in his previous ten appearances before his DFA.

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The 33-year old Martinez has been a super-utility guy throughout his six year major league career.  In that time he has accumulated just under three years of major league service time with the Phillies, Pirates and Indians, making 114 starts in his career.  This year alone, he has made starts in all three outfield positions as well as second base and third base.

Despite his defensive versatility, until this year he had not produced offensively. His career batting line stands at .199/.244/.272. Since he has 37 career starts in the outfield, he likely will take Bryce Brentz‘ place on the big league roster.

Though Sean Coyle was designated, it is not likely the end of his time for the Red Sox. A player who has a .165/.263/.280 is not attractive to teams who might be looking to take a chance on a young player, even if he was a former third round pick.

After an .883 OPS for Double-A Portland in 2014, Coyle seemed on his way to Fenway, but 2015 started his descent from top prospect status. Injuries limited him to 52 games and he was never able to adjust to Triple-A pitching, hitting just .159 in 126 at-bats that season. The team gave him another chance at it this year, but the above results tell the story. He did not improve upon returning to Double-A Portland.

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Guys have lost their 40-man spot only to get it back and succeed (Daniel Nava, for example), but Coyle will have to drastically turn things around to get another shot for the Red Sox.

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