Rays Place Brad Miller on DL, Acquire Martinez from Indians

The Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday placed second baseman Brad Miller on the DL and acquired INF/OF Michael Martinez from the Cleveland Indians.

Having missed the past two games with a lower abdominal injury the Tampa Bay Rays placed second baseman Brad Miller on the 10-day DL. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times via Twitter reported on Wednesday, that there was no update on Miller’s injury, though he would see a doctor when the Rays returned home from Cleveland. Evidently, Miller saw the doctor today and the result was a trip to the DL after determining that Brad Miller has a left abdominal strain.

No player was called up from the minors to replace Miller, though the Rays did acquire INF/OF Michael Martinez from the Indians in exchange for cash or the proverbial player to be named later and will take Miller’s spot on the roster. However, in acquiring Martinez the Rays had to clear a 40-man roster spot and have transferred Xavier Cedeno from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL.

Martinez is a versatile infielder/outfielder who can play all four-infield positions as well as all three-outfield spots was DFA’d by the Indians on May 14. However, do not look for much offensive production from the 34-year-old veteran.

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This season for the Indians, Martinez hit .346 (4-for-11) with a double and two walks in 15 games. Last season he split the year between Cleveland and Boston where he combined to hit .238/.267/.307 with one home run and four RBIs in 63 games. Career wise, Martinez holds a .200/.246/.270 line in seven major league seasons, with six home runs and 42 RBIs.

The Rays become the fifth major league team that he has played for, since being signed as an amateur free agent by the Washington Nationals in 2005, though never making it to the majors. In 2010, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired him in the Rule 5 Draft and Martinez would make his MLB debut in 2011 with the Phillies appearing in 88 games. Besides playing for the Phillies, Cleveland (two separate stints) and the Red Sox, Martinez also spent time with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Miller meanwhile has not shown the power stroke of 2016 when he launched 30 homers, nor has he done much at the plate hitting .205/.350/.318 with just two home runs and 14 RBIs in 39 games. However, what Brad Miller is doing is drawing walks, as he leads the AL with 30, and is two behind the MLB leader Paul Goldschmidt of Arizona.

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According to Topkin, the alternative to acquiring Martinez would have been promoting the Rays top prospect Willy Adames from Triple-A Durham.