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The New York Yankees’ latest signing, Ernesto Martinez (l).

The New York Yankees are under considerable pressure from the media and their fan base after general manager Brian Cashman left the MLB winter meetings on Wednesday without making a single free agent signing or significant trade. It was the first time that the Yankees have stood pat at the winter meetings since 2018, and even Cashman seemed bothered, openly admitting to reporters, “I haven’t accomplished anything,” as quoted by Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.

While Cashman is correct in his harsh self-assessment as far as the Yankees’ major league roster goes, out of the spotlight the organization has been active. On Friday, according to a report by journalist Francis Romero, who specializes in covering Caribbean baseball, the Yankees signed a minor league free agent contract with Ernesto Martinez Jr., a physically imposing first baseman who once drew comparisons to Bryce Harper and Yoenis Cespedes.

One of Cuba’s Best Baseball Players

The comparisons to Harper and Cespedes come courtesy of Steven Ohlrogge, a Milwaukee Brewers analyst for Fansided who wrote about Martinez Jr. when the Brewers signed him out of Cuba by way of France and the Dominican Republic in 2017.

Martinez Jr. “was identified as one of the best baseball players in his age group by age 13,” according to Patrick Ellington of the Red Black Green Baseball Blog. “He stood out on Cuba’s national teams for under-14 and under-15 international tournaments. His father Ernesto Martínez Sr. was one of the most productive catchers in the Cuban National Series (CNS) during the 1990s and 2000s.”

Ellington’s site “focuses on the African diaspora’s past, present, and future relationship with the sport of baseball.”

Injuries Impeded Cuban Prospect’s Career

Repeated injuries have held the 6-foot-6, 254-pound first baseman’s development back. But in 2025, the 26-year-old finally seemed to be figuring out how to realize his potential. He got off to a torrid start with the Nashville Sounds, the Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate, with a .529 batting average and 1.501 OPS from April 8 through April 13, earning him International League Player of the Week honors.

“You won’t find Ernesto Martinez Jr. on top prospect lists. You might not even find him in organizational top-30 lists,” wrote Jamie Cameron of the Brewer Fanatic site. “He’s kind of old. He doesn’t have a ton of positional defensive value (solely first base, except for 10 games in center field since 2021). He’s also putting up metrics at Triple-A Nashville that warrant a full, Exorcist-style 360-degree turning of heads.”

According to Romero, “Martinez Jr. was close to making his MLB debut with the Brewers last season but ultimately was not promoted.”

So as soon as he was eligible, on Nov. 6, Martinez Jr. elected to leave the Brewers and become a free agent, according to his MiLB.com page.

2026 Could Finally Be Martinez Jr.’s Breakthrough Year

In the Brewers’ organization, Martinez Jr. was given the nickname “El Espectáculo,” or “The Show.” “You have to see it in person,” Brewers assistant director of player development Brenton Del Chairo told MLB.com last year, after Milwaukee re-signed the prospect to a one-year deal. “The first thing you’ll be astounded by is the massive size of this person. But he’s extremely mobile, and he does things at that size that are so athletic. It’s extremely fun to watch. And he plays with such energy and passion.”

Martinez Jr. put up an OPS of .831 with 13 home runs in 401 at-bats for the Double-A Biloxi Shuckers in 2024, though that OPS dipped to .745 after he was promoted to Nashville in 2025. Injuries limited him to just 263 at-bats in 80 games.

The Cuba-born prospect may now be getting his final chance to break into the big leagues. His Yankees deal comes with an invitation to spring training, where the Yankees hope that the earlier comparisons with a star like Harper start to seem more realistic.

Jonathan Vankin JONATHAN VANKIN is an award-winning journalist and writer who now covers baseball and other sports for Heavy.com. He twice won New England Press Association awards for sports feature writing. He was a sports editor and writer at The Daily Yomiuri in Tokyo, Japan, covering Japan Pro Baseball, boxing, sumo and other sports. More about Jonathan Vankin