GARY, Ind. - In the middle of a six-game road trip, the Kansas City Monarchs made a flurry of moves in advance of the series opener with the Gary SouthShore RailCats tonight in Indiana.
Kansas City lost another pitcher to a Major League organization on Tuesday. After LHP Eric Stout signed with the Miami Marlins over the weekend, RHP Robinson Martinez did the same and joined him — becoming the fifth Monarchs player to sign with a Major League organization since opening day and the 11th since February 15, 2021.
Martinez, 23, was the youngest player on the Monarchs. The right-hander pitched in eight games for Kansas City and started one. He amassed a 4.97 ERA with 14 strikeouts and five walks in 12 â…” innings. Over his final seven appearances for the club, Martinez showcased a 3.38 ERA with 11 strikeouts.
In response to losing a handful of pitchers to the Marlins, the Monarchs added three players of their own. On Tuesday, Kansas City added LHP Elroy Urbina, OF Chancer Burks, and C Alexis Olmeda.
Urbina, 31, was a 37th round pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2011. From 2018-19, Urbina pitched in the Mexican League for Rieleros de Aguascalientes and Bravos de León. Across all levels, Urbina has pitched for five teams in six seasons. The left-hander has a career 6.57 ERA in 159 innings with 124 strikeouts and 121 walks. He last pitched in a Major League organization in 2012.
Burks, a former ninth-round pick of the Chicago Cubs in 2013, last played professionally in 2019 with the Tennessee Smokies and Iowa Cubs. The 26-year-old had previously spent seven years in the MiLB before being picked up by the Monarchs. In over 695 career games, Burks has slashed .255/.350/.362 with 241 RBIs and 116 stolen bases.
Olmeda, 27, was a 21st round pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2015. He spent five seasons in the minor leagues and posted a slashline of .227/.297/.329 with 30 doubles and 81 RBIs. Olmeda last played for Indios de Mayaguez in the Puerto Rican Winter League during the 2019-20 season. He didn’t record a hit in 15 plate appearances.
The Monarchs six game road swing continues tonight at the Steel Yard in Gary, Indiana. KC will take on the Gary SouthShore Railcats in the first game of a three-game series with game time set for 7:10 p.m. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network and the Mixlr app with the pre-game beginning at 6:45 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv. The Monarchs return home to Legends Field in KCK Friday night June 11 to start a nine-game home stand with a three-game series against the Houston Apollos. Tickets to all Monarch games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.