Nathan Martorella. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Prospect stunned, confused after being removed mid-game due to trade

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated 5/4/24

San Diego Padres prospect Nathan Martorella was completely stunned when his coach motioned to pull him from Friday’s game. But he soon found out the reason why.

Martorella was on second base during the top of the third inning of his Double-A San Antonio Missions’ game against the Arkansas Travelers. One of San Antonio’s coaches motioned for Martorella to come off the field, which caught Martorella by complete surprise. The first baseman was wondering what he had done wrong. But he soon found out.

Martorella was removed from the game because he had been traded to the Miami Marlins in the Luis Arraez deal. A video captured Martorella’s reaction and showed him and teammate Jakob Marksee bidding their Double-A teammates goodbye.

Nathan Martorella was … very confused about why he was pulled for a pinch runner for Double-A San Antonio.

He and Jakob Marsee left the game with a series of hugs shortly after. pic.twitter.com/OOAtmQVp7X

— Sam Dykstra (@SamDykstraMiLB) May 4, 2024

That is incredible. As soon as the word spread that they had been traded, the Missions had to work quickly to get them out of the game so they could report to their new organization — the Marlins.

Martorella was a fifth-round pick by the Padres in 2022. The Cal product was batting .294 with an .827 OPS this season. Marksee is only batting .185, but the speedster has 12 stolen bases in 22 games.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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