Martínez, affectionately nicknamed ″Café″, was signed by the New York Yankees as a free agent in 1983. During the 1986 season, he was sent to the White Sox in the same trade that brought Ron Kittle to the Yankees. Martínez made his major league debut at the age of 22 with the Chicago White Sox in 1988.
Martínez (24) is the on-deck hitter at Comiskey Park during a game in 1990
Despite his impressive frame, Martínez never was able to fulfill the potential that he showed in the minor leagues. His most productive season came in 1989 with the White Sox, when he posted career highs in batting average (.300), at-bats (350), hits (105), runs (44) and doubles (22), and also was named to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team.
Besides playing for the White Sox, Martínez also spent playing time as a utility player with the Indians and made his last major-league appearance with the Angels in 1995. He is perhaps best remembered as the batter who hit the long fly ball that bounced off José Canseco's head for a home run on May 26, 1993.[1][2]
In a seven-season career in MLB, Martínez was a .258 hitter with 25 home runs and 161 RBI in 465 game appearances. His minor-league totals include a .276 batting average with 50 homers and 310 RBI in 595 games. He was a reinforcement player for the Águilas del Zulia club that won the 1989 Caribbean Series title.
Martínez died on January 24, 2006, in Catia La Mar, Vargas, at age 40 after a long battle with stomach cancer, according to an article about his son in issue #2 of Cardinals Gameday Magazine.
