Detroit Tigers lose last pieces of J.D. Martinez trade from 2017

The Detroit Tigers have lost the last piece of the J.D. Martinez trade.

It has been five years since J.D. Martinez has suited up for a game in the Motor City with the Detroit Tigers organization. Before the trade deadline in 2017, the Tigers would ship Martinez to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for three prospects.

The Detroit Tigers received Sergio Alcántara, Jose King, and Dawel Lugo in the return package. All three of those players have officially moved on from the Tigers organization. None of them amounted to much of anything or became the players the Tigers were hoping for.

At the time of the trade, the thought was that Lugo had the upside to be a significant piece of the Tigers’ infield in the future. He was expected to hit for power and carry that ability through the minors into the big leagues.

Lugo last logged time in 2020 for the Tigers and has not logged another game since. He played nine games with the Tigers, where he slashed .200/.273/.200 before electing free agency after the 2020 season came to an end.

Alcantara made it through the 2020 season with the Tigers as an infielder. He was bouncing around, showing some versatility. He was then selected off waivers around Spring Training in 2021 by the Chicago Cubs.

He played in 89 games for the Cubs in 2021, slashing .205/.303/.327 in Chicago. He was then purchased by the Arizona Diamondbacks before the 2022 season started and ended up logging 71 games with them in 2022. There was also a stint with the San Diego Padres, where he logged 22 games before being claimed back by the Diamondbacks.

In total, this summer, Alcantara logged 93 games where he managed a .220/.261/.356 slash line. He is still pre-arbitration eligible and back with the Diamondbacks organization. Another stab in the Tigers’ back when it comes to this trade.

Not that Alcantara is the most desirable option or huge prospect, he’s back with the team that he was acquired from. But, the last domino of this trade has fallen. Shortstop Jose King has officially elected free agency from the Tigers.

It means the Tigers have officially “lost” this trade, even though this has been known for some time now. King has yet to make his big league debut, spending the 2022 season with West Michigan for the most part. He slashed .244/.279/.378 over 193 at-bats with the High-A Whitecaps team.

He was promoted to Double-A for six games where he was hitless, also having an 0-for-3 day with the Toledo Mud Hens in one game played. Again, while King has not shown a ton to be super pumped about, he has become a free agent.

The Tigers fans can put the Martinez trade to bed for good as King departs the organization.