GASTONIA, N.C. – Gastonia Ghost Peppers infielder Richie Martin had his contract purchased by the Texas Rangers organization on Friday.
Martin, 30, has had a stellar start to the 2025 season with Gastonia, slashing .318/.416/.624 (1.039 OPS). He’s hit seven homers and has driven in 16 runs to go along with a team-high seven steals.
The Detroit native was selected in the first round by the Athletics in 2015 out of the University of Florida. Martin made it to the big leagues with the Baltimore Orioles in 2019, and also played at the MLB level with the O’s in 2021 and 2022.
Martin spent the 2023 season with Triple-A Rochester in the Nationals system, and joined the Baseball Club a season ago.
With Gastonia in 2024, Martin hit .244 with a .755 OPS in 37 games. He played second base and shortstop last year, while also playing third base for the Peppers in 2025.
Martin will report to Triple-A Rock Round in the Rangers organization after becoming the first Gastonia Ghost Pepper to have his contract picked up this season.
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Gastonia Ghost Peppers begins its second season of operations with Zawyer Sports & Entertainment – a sports ownership group with professional teams operating in the U.S. and the fifth season for the franchise at CaroMont Health Park in the FUSE District of Gastonia. The Ghost Peppers have made the ALPB Playoffs for three consecutive seasons, setting the league record for highest win percentage in a three-year span (.651 from 2022-2024.)
In their inaugural season, the Ghost Peppers had seven players with contracts purchased by other leagues, whether that be MLB-affiliated clubs or leagues outside the country. They also had two former players make their MLB debuts in 2024 — Spencer Bivens (Tigers) and Bryan Sammons (2024.) Bivens is on the Giants’ 26-man roster in 2025. J.C. Escarra, who played for Gastonia in 2023, is currently on the Yankees’ 26-man roster.
Single game tickets for the Gastonia Ghost Peppers are currently on sale. Contact the Ghost Peppers office at 980-415-2255, or visit www.ghostpeppersbaseball.com for more information.