Yunior Marte

Yunior Marte (born February 2, 1995) is a Dominican professional baseball pitcher for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, and Cincinnati Reds, and in NPB for the Chunichi Dragons. In 2012, he was signed as an international free agent by the Kansas City Royals.

Early and personal life Marte was born in Santo Domingo, in the Dominican Republic. During the offseason he lives in Santo Domingo Norte, Dominican Republic. In 2013, Marte was named Dominican Royals Pitcher of the Year in the Dominican Summer League, after going 4–3 with an earned run average of 1.71 in 11 appearances covering innings.

In 2016, for Single-A Lexington, Marte was 6–8 with one save and a 4.21 earned run average in 26 games (7 starts), in which he pitched a career-high 107 innings, threw 19 wild pitches (2nd in the South Atlantic League), led the league with 3 balks, walked 55 batters (6th-most in the league, and his 4.6 walks-per-9-innings were 7th-highest in the league), and struck out 103 batters (with his 1.87 strikeouts per walks rate being 10th-lowest in the league). He also made 17 appearances for the Double-A Northwest Arkansas Naturals on the year, in which he was 1–2 while registering a 5.75 earned run average with 27 walks (6.8 walks per 9 innings pitched) and 38 strikeouts (9.5 strikeouts per 9 innings pitched) in 36 innings, with a walks plus hits per inning pitched of 1.667. On November 2, 2020, he elected minor league free agency.

After 3 scoreless appearances for Sacramento, on April 12, 2022, Marte was promoted to the major leagues for the first time to fill in for Tyler Rogers, who had been placed on paternity leave. Marte made his major league debut that day, pitching a scoreless inning of relief and allowing one hit to close out a 13–2 victory over the San Diego Padres. Marte was optioned back to Triple-A the following day after John Brebbia was reinstated from the bereavement list. On October 5, Marte earned his first career win after pitching two perfect innings against the San Diego Padres.

Pitching for the Giants in 2022, he was 1–1 with a 5.44 earned run average in 39 relief appearances, in which he pitched 48 innings and gave up 22 walks while striking out 44 batters, and had a walks plus hits per inning pitched of 1.438. Batters had a barrel percentage against him of 3.5%, in the lowest 3% in the major leagues. He mostly threw an 86 mph slider, a 97 mph sinker, and a 98 mph four-seam fastball. Pitching for Sacramento in 2022 he was 1–1 with three saves and a 3.16 earned run average in 25 relief appearances, in which he pitched innings, giving up nine hits and striking out 35 batters. Pitching for the Phillies in 2023, he was 1–1 with a 5.03 earned run average, as he had a 1.627 walks plus hits per inning pitched in innings over 40 games.

Chunichi Dragons

On November 23, 2024, Marte signed a minor league contract with the Seattle Mariners organization. However, on February 5, 2025, Marte signed with the Chunichi Dragons of Nippon Professional Baseball. He made 35 appearances for Chunichi, posting a 1-4 record and 1.95 ERA with 25 strikeouts and two saves across innings pitched. On December 3, it was announced that the Dragons would not bring Marte back for the 2026 season.

Cincinnati Reds On December 30, 2025, Marte signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds. He began the regular season with the Triple-A Louisville Bats, registering a 2-0 record and 5.12 ERA with 26 strikeouts and five saves across his first 20 appearances. On May 29, 2026, the Reds selected Marte's contract, adding him to their active roster. In his lone pitching appearance for the Reds, Marte allowed four runs on three hits, one walk, and one strikeout. On June 1, Marte was designated for assignment by the Reds. Two days later, Marte cleared waivers, refused an outright assignment to Triple-A Louisville, and elected for free agency.

Pittsburgh Pirates On June 6, 2026, Marte signed a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He made five appearances for the Triple–A Indianapolis Indians, posting a 1–1 record and 6.75 ERA with 10 strikeouts across innings of relief. Marte was released by the Pirates organization on July 4.

Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

On July 6, 2026, Marte signed with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball.