Blue Jays Nation’s Pre-Season Prospect Countdown – No. 27: Gabriel Martinez

Photo credit:Niall O'Donohoe - CSPlusBaseball

5 months ago

Today’s prospect had a tough 2023 season.

This is Blue Jays Nation’s annual pre-season list, in which I’ll take a look at the top 50 prospects in the organization. We’ll look at the player’s stats, my observations, and other publications’ scouting reports if available.

Let’s take a look at Gabriel Martinez

Getting to know Gabriel Martinez…

Position: Outfield

Bats: Right

Born: July 24, 2002

Acquired: 2018 International Free Agency

2023 Team: High-A Vancouver

Previous Ranking: 15

Martinez started his career in 2019 with the Dominican Summer League Blue Jays where he slashed .239/.317/.347 with two homers in 245 plate appearances, along with an 8.6 BB% and a 10.6 K%. Due to the pandemic, he missed all of 2020, but headed to the Florida Complex League in 2021.

There, he slashed .330/.448/.410 with no homers in 125 plate appearances, along with a higher BB% (16.8%) than K% (14.4%). However, the 2022 season is where Martinez made his mark, as he slashed .288/.348/.483 with 11 home runs in 264 plate appearances, along with an 8.3 BB% and a 17 K%.

The good times kept rolling when he was promoted to High-A Vancouver in 2022, as he slashed .324/.381/.490 with three homers in 113 plate appearances, along with an 8 BB% and a 15 K%.

Martinez repeated the High-A level, where things didn’t go great. Martinez’s power continued, as he hit 12 homers, but his slash line dropped to .242/.300/.374. Moreover, his BB% dropped to 6.9%, but his K% stayed low at 16.5%, so that’s good. All in all, Martinez finished the 2023 season with an 82 wRC+.

The 21-year-old only ranks on one list heading into 2024. Martinez ranks 30th overall on Scott Mitchell’s Top 50 list. Mitchell notes that Martinez is carried by his hit tool, but just failed to hit very well. Thankfully, he was still hitting for the same amount of power, but it was a disappointing season for Martinez.

Still, it seems a bit odd that so many lists have taken him off the Top 30, despite being one of the best hitters in the organization in 2022. Martinez is only 21 and the 2023 season was his first bout of adversity, so don’t be surprised if he hits better next season.