Fastball

Cincinnati Reds' Nick Martinez to Accept One-Year Qualifying Offer

The veteran right-hander figures to slot into the team's rotation in 2024 on the $21 million deal.

Brady Farkas

Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Nick Martinez (28) throws to the Minnesota Twins in the first inning at Target Field on Sept 14.
Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Nick Martinez (28) throws to the Minnesota Twins in the first inning at Target Field on Sept 14. / Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images
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According to a report from Cuban Baseball Insider Francys Romero, veteran right-hander Nick Martinez is accepting the qualifying offer from the Cincinnati Reds.

Nick Martinez is accepting the Reds' qualifying offer of $21.05M, per sources.

The final deadline to accept QO is Monday, November 19 (4 PM ET).

Martinez has a 3.31 ERA since returning from Japan in 2022 and was the NL Pitcher of the Month in September.

Romero corrected himself to say that the deadline is actually Tuesday, the 19th.

Martinez declined a $12 million player option earlier this offseason, so he ends up getting about a $9 million raise by virtue of that decision.

He made 42 appearances this past season for Cincinnati, but only 16 of those were starts. He went 10-7 with a 3.10 ERA, striking out 116 batters in 142.1 innings. Given the newfound financial commitment, it would stand to reason that Martinez will break camp in the starting rotation alongside Hunter Greene, Andrew Abbott and Nick Lodolo. The Reds would still need to find a stable fifth option, and they've recently been linked on the trade market to Brady Singer of the Kansas City Royals.

Martinez is a seven-year veteran who has pitched for the Texas Rangers, San Diego Padres and Reds. He made his major league debut in 2014 with the Rangers, staying there until 2017. He then went to Japan for four seasons before resurfacing with the Padres in 2022.

The Reds finished in fourth place in the National League Central this past season and haven't made the playoffs since 2020.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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