Brayan Rocchio’s comments show just how much the Guardians love Angel Martínez

While there have been a ton of positive storylines around the Cleveland Guardians this year, there’s perhaps no storyline that’s been more exciting than Angel Martínez’s development. 

After struggling through his 1 1/2 years with the Guardians, Martínez has become one of the most productive hitters in the Guardians’ lineup. 

That theme was on full display this weekend against the Reds when he went 4-for-12 with two homers, a double and five RBI to help power the Guardians to a series win. 

And, in the words of teammate Brayan Rocchio, that kind of performance shows why Martínez is “going to be a superstar.” 

Angel Martínez is finally living up to his potential 

Rocchio’s words came on Saturday night after he launched a go-ahead home run in the Guardians' win over Cincinnati, and he followed that up by smashing another home run on Sunday in the series finale. 

Martínez has now hit a team-high nine home runs in 44 games, which is just two away from how many he hit in 139 games last season. 

He also has a .266/.312/.510 slashline along with an OPS+ of 131, which is the second-highest mark behind Chase DeLauter. 

Martínez was always going to be a part of the Guardians’ 2026 picture due to the lack of outfield options, but he’s played his way into becoming a mainstay on the Guardians’ roster. 

His homer on Saturday may be the most impressive he’s hit in the big leagues given the situation and swing. Not only did it give the Guardians the lead, but it also came against Reds reliever Pierce Johnson, who had made Martínez look foolish the day prior with a swinging strikeout. 

But Martínez wasn’t fooled on Saturday, as he got a curveball over the plate and smashed it 395 feet to right field for a go-ahead blast. 

His longball on Sunday came on a curveball that Connor Phillips hung over the plate. It left his bat at 107.9 miles per hour and traveled 407 feet. 

Not only is he punishing mistakes, but he’s also hitting out “good” pitches, which we saw in the Guardians’ series against the Angels during the week. 

Martínez has even turned into a serviceable defensive outfielder (2 Outs Above Average) after being borderline unplayable last year (-4 OAA). 

The biggest reason for that defensive upgrade has been Steven Kwan’s shift over to center field, which has allowed for Martínez to see more times in the corners compared to center field. 

The biggest thing here is that Martínez is finally showing the kind of potential that he always teased us with over the past couple seasons. He has all the traits that make front offices drool (he’s an athletic, powerful switch-hitting outfielder), but he never seemed to find a way to get it all to click.

That's no longer the case. And not only has that helped him become a mainstay in the Guardians' lineup, but it's also helped him look like a superstar, as Rocchio said.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow