Rangers notes: Martin sent down after season-long struggles at plate
Rangers outfielder Leonys Martin, who has struggled at the plate for much of the season, was finally optioned to Triple A Round Rock before Tuesday’s game.
Ryan Strausborger, a 16th round draft choice in 2010, was called up to the big leagues for the first time. Strausborger, 27, bats right-handed and has been particularly effective against left-handed pitchers throughout his career. He’s hitting .296 with 72 extra-base hits and 69 RBIs against lefties in his minor league career.
Martin was hitting .220 overall and .231 against left-handers. Despite his slightly better average against lefties, Martin’s on-base percentage was a tick below against lefties than against right-handers. Rangers manager Jeff Banister hopes Martin can follow the footsteps of Rougned Odor, who found his swing after a month in Round Rock.
“We know we need Leonys Martin to be something more than a defensive replacement,” Banister said. “He wasn’t getting the consistent at-bats it takes to get going.”
Martin’s playing time had dwindled with the rise of rookie Delino DeShields.
Banister hopes Martin can “go down and find that edge, similar to Odor. Find that chip. Be as good in the batter’s box as he is in the outfield.”
The Rangers believe Martin has the talent to produce at the major league level. He’s proven that defensively while leading the league in outfield assists since 2013, including a league-leading 13 this season. But his approach at the plate has been erratic. He has 68 strikeouts and just 16 walks.
“We want him to. We need for him to,” Banister said on Martin’s chance to return this season. “We felt like the way we were going to do that was to go ahead and send him down to get those consistent at-bats.”
Strausborgers’s call
Strausborger, who was hitting .278 with 33 extra-base hits and 27 stolen bases for Round Rock, received the call from Express manager Jason Wood, who managed him in Class A in 2011.
“Me and him have been around each other for a while so it was good to hear it from him,” Strausborger said. “I tell you, there’s no words to describe it. I had just woken up. I was shocked. It’s still so surreal. He called me and told me he was excited for me and wanted to be the first one to let me know.”
Strausborger called his parents in Indiana, his girlfriend in New York and then walked around in a giddy stupor for a while before heading up to Arlington.
“I just walked around the room in circles for a little bit just soaking it in. I didn’t know where to start. I had to take a deep breath and get myself into gear and kind of calm myself down,” he said.
Briefly
▪ Left-hander Derek Holland allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits in two innings for Round Rock on Tuesday night. He struck out three and walked three in 55 pitches (35 strikes). Holland is scheduled to make his next rehab start Sunday at Double A Frisco.
▪ Catcher Carlos Corporan (sprained left thumb) has been recalled from Round Rock with soreness after catching seven innings Monday. He’ll continue to rehab his thumb in Arlington.
▪ Free agent right-hander Phil Irwin was signed to a minor league contract and assigned to Round Rock. Irwin was 1-7 with an 8.68 ERA in 12 starts in the Korean Baseball Organization.
▪ Right-hander Robert Coello signed a minor league contract and will report to Arizona to start workouts before being assigned to a club. He was 6-3 in 11 starts with Sacramento (Giants Triple A). He is 2-3 with a 5.90 ERA in 28 major league appearances with Boston (2010), Toronto (2012) and the Los Angeles Angels (2013).
Stefan Stevenson, 817-390-7760
Twitter: @StevensonFWST
This story was originally published August 4, 2015 at 9:20 PM with the headline "Rangers notes: Martin sent down after season-long struggles at plate."