Reliever Chris Martin has agreed to a one-year contract to return to the Texas Rangers, pending a physical. The deal marks the first reunion for the team with a member of its 2025 bullpen. Martin posted a 2.98 ERA in 49 appearances last season despite injury challenges.
Chris Martin, a veteran reliever, is set to rejoin the Texas Rangers on a one-year contract, according to a source who spoke to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand. The agreement awaits confirmation from the club and a physical examination. This move brings back the first pitcher from the Rangers' 2025 bullpen, which finished with a 3.62 ERA, ranking fifth in the majors.
In 2025, Martin appeared in 49 games for Texas, compiling a 2.98 ERA. However, injuries limited his second-half output to just 9 2/3 innings, including stints on the injured list for shoulder fatigue, two calf strains, and thoracic outlet syndrome that ended his season. It remains unclear whether he underwent surgery during the offseason.
Entering his age-40 season in 2026, Martin has shown durability when healthy, posting a 2.60 ERA from 2022 to 2025. Standing at 6-foot-8, he relies on a four-seam fastball averaging 94.7 mph, complemented by a cutter, splitter, sinker, and sweeper.
Martin's career has been marked by resilience. Drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 2005, he suffered a torn labrum in his right shoulder and was out of baseball until a 2010 comeback in an independent league in Grand Prairie, Texas. He signed with the Boston Red Sox in 2011, was traded to the Rockies before 2014, and made his MLB debut that year with Colorado. After struggles with the Rockies in 2014 and the New York Yankees in 2015, he thrived in Japan from 2016-17 with the Nippon Ham Fighters. The Rangers, his hometown team, signed him before the 2018 season, and over the past eight years, he has pitched to a 3.04 ERA in 352 2/3 innings across stints with Texas, Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Boston.
This signing is the third reliever addition for the Rangers this offseason, joining Alexis Díaz and Tyler Alexander, as the team rebuilds its bullpen for the second straight winter. Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young expressed confidence in the unit, stating, “I feel good about the options that we have right now [in the bullpen], and I think it's our job as the front office is to continue to look to improve it.” He added, “We've got some young guys that had some success last year that could slide into the bullpen, and we've signed some veterans that we think have had real Major League success that are going to be added into our bullpen as well. Ultimately, it's an ongoing process, and we’re always looking to continue to improve.”
The Rangers remain interested in other relievers like Shawn Armstrong and Josh Sborz to bolster the group.
