Wednesday, July 4, 2018

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s - #15 Ramon Martinez

#12
Ramon E. Martinez
Infield

Not to be confused with the pitcher Ramon Martinez (Pedro's older brother), Ramon E. Martinez enjoyed a 12-year big league career primarily as a middle infielder.  He played in 33 games for the 2005 Phillies after Placido Polanco was shipped to the Tigers for reliever Ugueth Urbina and Martinez on June 8th.  Urbina ended up with a Phillies card in the 2005 Topps Update set, while Martinez had to settle for a custom-made Chachi card.

Martinez was used primarily as a pinch-hitter during his stint with the club, although he did get six starts at first base and a sole start at third.  His best game came on September 14th when he hit a third-inning grand slam off the Braves Horacio Ramirez in a game the Phillies would eventually win, 12-4.  Following the season, Martinez signed with the Dodgers and he'd play through the 2009 season before retiring at 36.

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  195
Born:  May 15, 1974, Waverly, IA
Drafted:  Drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 3rd round of the amateur player draft, June 22, 1996.
Major League Teams:  Oakland Athletics 1998-2000; Kansas City Royals 2001-2002; Detroit Tigers 2003; Phillies 2004
Professional Affiliations:  Oakland Athletics 1997-2000; Kansas City Royals 2001-2002; Detroit Tigers 2003; Phillies 2004-2005

Phillies Career
33 games as pinch-hitter and infielder, .286 (16 for 56), grand slam, 9 RBIs
Acquired:  June 8, 2005 - Acquired with Ugueth Urbina from the Detroit Tigers for Placido Polanco.
Debut:  June 9, 2005 - Pinch-hit for Vicente Padilla in the 5th inning in a game against the Rangers, grounding out to the pitcher.
Final Game:  September 24, 2005 - Pinch-hit for Aaron Fultz in the 7th inning against the Reds, flying out to left.
Departed:  October 27, 2005 - Granted free agency and signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers, January 31, 2006.

1999 Upper Deck #16
2001 Topps #253
2005 Topps Total #257
2005 Chachi #34
2007 Topps #553
0 Martinez Baseball Card in My Collection

Complete Chachi Checklist
2005 Chachi #34

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1999 Upper Deck #16
First Topps Base Card:  2001 Topps #253
Last Mainstream Card:  2007 Topps #553
Other Notable Cards:  2000 Fleer Tradition #214, 2002 Topps #467, 2003 Topps #79, 2003 Topps Traded #T23, 2004 Topps #455, 2005 Topps Total #257

Sources:  Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s
1 Kirk Bullinger
2 Chris Pritchett
3 Bryan Ward
4 Mark Holzemer
5 Turner Ward
6 P.J. Forbes
7 Matt Walbeck
8 Kelly Stinnett
9 Valerio de los Santos
10 Josh Hancock
11 Brian Powell
12 Paul Abbott
13 Todd Jones
14 A.J. Hinch
15 Ramon Martinez

This is a continuing series looking at those players who spent time with the Phillies but possess no baseball card proof of their time in Philadelphia.  In some cases, the First and Last Mainstream cards listed above have been subjectively chosen if multiple cards were released in that year.

No comments: