Nick Martinez might not be the top player arriving in free agency, but he’s the kind of starter that contenders regularly argue over in the winter. After two years playing in Cincinnati, where he filled rotation gaps, balanced the bullpen and tossed over 300 innings, the 35-year-old righty is back on the free agency market.
He is coming off a 165-inning season with a reliable 1.21 WHIP, and just a season removed from a well-regarded 3.10 ERA season. Add in his Team USA experience, Olympics & WBC, and he brings a level of poise and adaptability that front offices value.
Cincinnati has him listed among their departing free agents, and with no qualifying offer attached, he’ll draw wide interest. Most evaluators expect something around a two-year, $25-30 million deal.
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That places him in the range where both contenders and struggling clubs see value. Here are three teams that line up best for Nick Martinez in this offseason’s market.
Few contenders need versatile pitchers quite like New York Yankees. With Gerrit Cole recovering from Tommy John surgery, Clarke Schmidt recovering from injury, and Carlos Rodon delayed after elbow surgery, New York faces 2026 in short supply of proven, healthy innings.
Martinez fits their exact April start-of-seasons plan: start in April, transition to a multi-inning role once the rotation is set, and remain in the playoff’s circle in October.
2. Los Angeles Angels
The Angels might be the cleanest fit.Their 2025 season proved once again that they have no pitching depth at all.
The rotation was unpredictable, the bullpen blew up time and again, and the young arms looked like they couldn’t hold any roles. Martinez offers the one thing the Angels lack: dependable, low-maintenance innings.
He’s shown he can survive hitter-friendly parks and carry 140-165 innings without drama. For a team searching for stability more than star power, he’s the type of veteran who lifts the floor on Day 1.
No rotation in baseball needs innings more desperately than Colorado’s. The Rockies’ starters posted a historically bad ERA and cycled through arms all season. They can’t chase aces, so they need durable, adaptable veterans who won’t melt at altitude.
Martinez fits the mold, a swingman by trade, steady, resilient, and capable of giving Colorado 25-30 starts.
Local speculation has already connected him to the Rockies, and he makes sense as both a stabilizer and a possible trade chip if the season slips away.
Edited by Shubham Soni
