This story was excerpted from Kennedi Landry’s Rangers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

ARLINGTON -- J.P. Martinez couldn’t sleep Friday night.

It had been a whirlwind 48 hours, going from Oklahoma City -- where he was playing with Triple-A Round Rock -- to San Francisco, where he joined the Rangers big league club to make his MLB debut. He drew a walk against the Giants on Friday.

“A lot of emotions, a lot of things going on through my head,” Martínez said. “Yeah, I just couldn’t sleep.”

He slept better the next night, he said.

Martínez began his MLB career with a five-game on-base streak (three in SF, two vs. LA), including three consecutive multihit games after going hitless with a walk in his debut. In five games, he’s compiled a slash line of .389/.409/.444.

Initially called up as a brief replacement with Travis Jankowski going on the paternity list for the birth of his fourth child, Martínez has earned his way into an extended stay with the big league club after a stunning weekend in San Francisco.

“The kid’s done a nice job,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. “He's got a lot of energy, gives you good at-bats up there and plays a really good defense. He's really shining right now.

“I tell you what, this kid's got a calmness and a confidence about him. Really, he's a ballplayer.”

Signed during the 2018 international signing period, Martínez was expected to move quickly through the system, but he never quite lived up to that potential in the upper levels of the Minors. With Double-A Frisco in ‘21, he slashed .242/.355/.368 and then posted a nearly identical line in ‘22 between Frisco and Round Rock, slashing .243/.360/.433.

Finally, in 2023, he broke onto the scene with a hot year in Triple-A Round Rock, slashing .312/.427/.565 in 67 games, forcing his way onto the Rangers’ radar.

“We've really been excited about what we have seen from J.P.,” Bochy said. “We've heard really good things down in Round Rock about how well he was playing before he got there. But it's been impressive, the calmness this kid has had and the confidence with the job he's done. He can play all of the outfield, I think you can put him anywhere in the batting order. He's that kind of bat, and he’s a versatile guy in the outfield, good baserunner. He's a nice addition and he's made us a better club.”

Martínez admitted that it’s been a long journey for him. From highly touted international prospect to struggling in the Minors, he said sometimes he forgot to love the game and play with passion. The pressure that came with living up to his billing took away from his joy of the game.

He credited Rangers mental skills coaches Hannah Huesman and David Franco for helping him rediscover the fun in baseball, even when some games won’t go his way.

“I always knew that I could play really well,” he said. “But sometimes I didn't have the games I expected to have and that's baseball. ... But I tried to push myself harder because I wanted to get here in the big leagues. The people on his staff talked to me and just kind of told me ‘Hey, you need to forget about those bad games and continue to focus on the positives and do the things that you're doing regularly.’ Just to have fun with the game, and I think it's helped me a lot.”

It’s shown with his play on the field, and has translated to his short time with the big league club. He’s drawn rave reviews from coaches for his ability to rise to the occasion and impact the game in all facets.

Martínez providing quality at-bats makes an already deep Rangers lineup even deeper. As a versatile outfielder with the ability to play all three positions, he can start at any time, or provide speed and athleticism off the bench as a late-game replacement.

“If he's not playing, he's a weapon off the bench,” Bochy said. “He's a good bunter, he can steal a base. He can give you a good at-bat up there when he starts. He just looks so comfortable. You just love the confidence in him. He's a guy who's going to really help us, I think. That’s how much I think of him in the short look I've gotten so far.”