MARTINEZ Nick

General
MLB VETERAN
He was selected by the Texas Rangers in the 18th round, 564th overall pick, of the 2011 MLB Draft. He was drafted out of Fordham University, where he played three seasons as a starting second baseman and relief pitcher. He played in the minors for three seasons before making his major league debut for the Rangers against the Tampa Bay Rays on In April 2014. From 2014 to 2017 he made 88 appearances for the Rangers. (fordhamsports.com, 06 Jul 2021; kcfastpitch.com, 27 Sep 2017)

PLAYING IN JAPAN
In 2017 he became a free agent and in January 2018 he signed for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in the Nippon Professional Baseball [NPB] league. He played in 42 games for Hokkaido in 2018 and 2020, before moving to Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in 2021. "It was just a good opportunity for me at the right time [to move to Japan]. I had been let go by the Rangers and I wanted to get a chance to play for a whole season and develop my craft. It was more of a personal gain for me to come out here and get better as a player. I'm very fortunate the Fighters were able to give me the opportunity." (fordhamsports.com, 06 Jul 2021; kcfastpitch.com, 27 Sep 2017)

THE JAPANESE GAME
In 2018 he spoke about the differences between baseball in Japan and the United States of America. "The adjustment I had to make here [in Japan] is there's not a whole lot of swing-and-miss. They [Japanese batters] are really good at contact. In the States, they're smart and they have a bit more power, but there are also holes in their swings. If you execute those pitches, you get a swing-and-miss, but if you don't, it's more likely a home run or double. Here, there are less holes. Guys are able to foul off enough pitches until the pitcher makes a mistake and they get their base hit. They're also smart, they lay off pitches they know are out of the zone. They're very good at contact, hardly any swing-and-miss, so you have to be very precise with your pitches." (japantimes.co.jp, 11 Apr 2018)

JAPANESE FRIENDS
Prior to signing for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in 2018, he had played with several Japanese players at the Texas Rangers, including Hirotoshi Onaka in the lower leagues and Yu Darvish in the MLB. He was also teammates at the Rangers with former Hiroshima Carp pitcher Colby Lewis, former Tokyo Yakult Swallows reliever Tony Barnette, and former Fighters reliever Anthony Bass. "I know a lot of guys that have come over here [Japan] and enjoyed it. It's been great. I've come over here with an open mind and eager to learn the culture. I've always been fond of it. Obviously, I've played with a few Japanese players. Hirotoshi Onaka was the first Japanese player I played with, in short-season, and we played together in low-A also. I'm just very fond of the way he plays the game and his culture. Then I played with Darvish [for] four years, so I've always just been intrigued." (japantimes.co.jp, 11 Apr 2018)