A member of the Atlanta Braves' 2021 World Series squad announced his retirement on Wednesday afternoon. According to Robert Murray of FanSided, former Braves reliever Chris Martin has retired from MLB. Martin pitched 11 seasons, three of which came with Atlanta. Across those 11 seasons, Martin posted a 3.53 ERA, 3.14 FIP, and 6.9 bWAR.
Overall, Martin was a reliable reliever who played a key role in Atlanta's bullpen from 2019-2021. Martin pitched in five games during Atlanta's magical 2021 run, but it was his involvement in the previous two Octobers that reminds us of some of the Braves' most heartbreaking postseason moments.
Veteran reliever Chris Martin has retired from Major League Baseball. Martin, who pitched 11 seasons, spent time with the Rangers, Braves, Red Sox, Cubs, Dodgers, Yankees and Rockies.
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) November 11, 2026
Chris Martin's retirement reminds us of a couple of his brutal postseason moments with the Braves
The first was not his fault, but during the 2019 NLDS, Martin injured himself while warming up in Game 1 of the series. Martin's left oblique injury forced the Braves to pivot to Luke Jackson in the top of the eighth inning against the Cardinals. Naturally, the Cardinals erased the 3-1 deficit thanks to eighth and ninth inning rallies, and the Braves eventually dropped a brutal one-run loss in the series opener.
Martin's absence forced the Braves to add Julio Teheran to the NLDS roster, the man who surrendered the walk-off sac fly in Game 4 of the series. To avoid too much trauma, we will skip the eventual disaster in Game Five that allowed the Cardinals to clinch the series. It was no fault of Martin's, but years later we can't help but feel his injury cost the Braves a trip to the NLCS that season.
Fast forward to the 2020 COVID season, the Braves were humming in the NLCS against the Dodgers. Atlanta built a 3-1 series advantage before back-to-back LA wins forced a deciding Game 7. To the dismay of Braves fans, Game 7 was a tightly contested affair, with the game entering the seventh inning tied at three. Unfortunately, in the bottom of the seventh, Cody Bellinger blasted a game-winning home run off of Martin and punctuated the Dodgers' epic comeback in the series.
Thankfully, the Braves and Martin got their payback the following year. Martin wore several hats in Atlanta's bullpen, but more often than not, he was a trustworthy late inning option for Brian Snitker from the moment he was acquired from Texas. It hasn't been all October doom and gloom for Atlanta in the 2020s, but Martin's retirement reminded us of a couple of lowlights. Still, Martin enjoyed an underratedly successful career, and his stint with Atlanta was filled with dominant innings.
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