CPBL Foreign Players Updates Volume #371
Rakuten Monkeys News: Marcelo Martinez
On January 21, the Rakuten Monkeys announced the re-signing of Marcelo Martinez for the 2025 CPBL season. The 28-year-old Mexican left-hander will return for his second season in Taiwan. According to the Monkeys, Marcelo Martinez is expected to arrive in Taiwan around mid-February.
“He played a key role in our rotation last season. This re-signing provides a sense of reassurance for our pitching staff,” said the Monkeys in a press release.
Rakuten Monkeys’ Marcelo Martinez gave up 1 run and struck out 7 over 7 innings. #CPBL pic.twitter.com/xRX19FvDu7
— CPBL STATS 🪬🔮 (@GOCPBL) June 8, 2024
Marcelo Martinez truly lived up to his reputation as one of the top pitchers in the Mexican Winter League (LMP) in 2023. In the 2024 CPBL season, he started 24 games for the Rakuten Monkeys, posting an impressive 2.04 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over 149.2 innings.
During the 2024 postseason, he started Game 2 of the Playoff Series against the Uni-Lions. He delivered six scoreless innings with two strikeouts, securing a win for the Monkeys.
So, just how outstanding was Marcelo Martinez’s performance during the 2024 CPBL season? Here are some basic stats compared to other pitchers in the league.
- 2.04 ERA (2nd in league)
- 149.2 Innings Pitched (6th in league)
- 1.10 WHIP (5th in league, starters only)
- 114 Strikeouts (5th in league)
With the re-signing of Marcelo Martinez, the Rakuten Monkeys now have Jonathan Bermúdez, Pedro Fernández and Beau Sulser as their foreign players.
Further Readings
Foreign players come and go. Therefore, we have compiled a foreign player tracker, and I’ll be updating that list regularly to keep pace with the ever-changing roster shuffle throughout the 2025 CPBL season.