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Spokane Indians

Spokane Indians Pregame: Rangers assign No. 3 prospect Julio Pablo Martinez to Indians

By Dave Nichols daven@spokesman.com(509) 459-5441

The Spokane Indians face the Boise Hawks on opening day of the Northwest League schedule at 6:30 p.m. at Avista Stadium.

The Indians send right-handed Hans Crouse, the Texas Rangers second-round pick of the 2017 MLB Draft and No. 4 prospect, against Boise righty Pearson McMahan, a fourth-round pick of the Colorado Rockies in the 2017 draft.

Courtesy @spokaneindians
Courtesy @spokaneindians

Indians first-year manager Kenny Holmberg on if he had any “butterflies” for opening night: “No. It’s just kind of like ‘Ding, ding.’ First pitch, the first contact, the first fly ball caught. All that kind of stuff. The sun settles down and the lights come out. After that, it’s just baseball.”

Transactions: The Rangers assigned two outfielders to the Indians opening day roster, including Julio Pablo Martinez.

Martinez, 22, a Cuba native who signed as an international free agent in March for $2.8 million, is the Rangers No. 3 prospect according to MLB.com. He possesses impressive speed and the potential to be an above-average hitter.

The left-handed slugger went 9 for 22 with a home run, triple, double and nine walks – including four in a single game on June 4 – during his seven games in the Dominican Summer League this season.

He batted .333/.469/.498 with 24 steals in 61 games in Cuba’s top league as a 20-year-old in 2016-17 before defecting. Before joining Texas, he spent parts of two seasons in the independent Can-Am League and hit .280/.335/.414 with 24 steals in 76 contests.