Abel Martínez

Abel Martínez

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1", Weight 216 lb.

• Born April 15, 1977 in Los Mochis, Sinaloa Mexico

BR register page

Biographical Information

Third baseman Abel Martínez has played over a decade in the Mexican League.

Martínez debuted in 1996 at age 19, hitting a meek .154/.185/.192 in 23 games as a backup for the Langosteros de Quintana Roo. In 1997, he played a bit more often, but didn't improve his average - he batted .154/.214/.231 in 48 games. In 1998, he was starting to develop, hitting .254/.290/.263 for Quintana Roo. The next year, he batted .235/.291/.271 in 110 games.

Abel came to the US in 2000 to play for the Spokane Indians. He hit .308/.353/.360. He tied for fifth in the Northwest League in batting average but did not make the All-Star team as Lance Niekro was picked at third base.

In 2001, Martínez returned to Mexico to hit .217 for Cancun. He batted .286 in 2002 and .257 in 2003. He switched to the Laguna Cowboys in 2004 and improved significantly, hitting .329/.373/.488. Abel batted .333/.401/.475 for Laguna in '05 and stole 16 bases in 23 tries.

In the 2006 season, he hit .372/.405/.458 for the Rieleros de Aguascalientes. He tied for third in the Mexican League in average behind only Geronimo Gil and Javier Robles.

Abel was 0 for 3 for the Mexican national team in the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games. Martínez was also with Mexico for the 2006 COPABE Olympic Qualifiers, hitting .276/.344/.379 and making 3 errors in 9 games at third base as Mexico fell shy of earning a spot in the Olympics but qualified for the 2008 Final Olympic Qualification Tournament.

The Los Mochis native hit .252/.303/.330 in 81 games for the 2007 Veracruz Eagle and .317/.364/.427 in 21 for Aguascalientes, a steep decline from his 2006 campaign. In 2008, he played for the Potros de Tijuana (.282/.305/.385 in 19 G) and the Tigres de Quintana Roo (.324/.399/.452 in 78 G).

Back with Quintana Roo for 2009, Abel hit .322/.381/.437. He then joined Mexico for the 2009 Baseball World Cup.

Sources

• The Mexican League: Comprehensive Player Statistics by Pedro Treto Cisneros
• MILB.com
• Pat Doyle's Professional Baseball Player Database
• 2005-2006 Baseball Guides
• 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games website
• Defunct IBAF site
• 2001 and 2008 Baseball Almanacs