Shairon Martis
Shairon Benjamin Martis is a Dutch-Curaçaoan professional baseball pitcher for Curaçao Neptunus of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. He pitched in Major League Baseball for the Washington Nationals in 2008 and 2009 and Minnesota Twins in 2013. He played for the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions of the Taiwanese Chinese Professional Baseball League in 2014. After several years in American independent baseball, he came to the Dutch Hoofdklasse in 2020.
Martis has played for the Netherlands national team in several international tournaments. He threw a perfect game in the 2006 World Baseball Classic and has been on their roster for the WBC in 2013, 2017, and 2023. He was on the Dutch team that won the 2011 Baseball World Cup and played in the Africa/Europe 2020 Olympic Qualification tournament in 2019 and has won several European Championships.
Amateur career
In 2002, Martis was a member of the Curaçao team that won the Senior League World Series championship in Bangor, Maine. He was teammates with Jair Jurrjens and Sharlon Schoop.Professional career
San Francisco Giants
Martis was signed by the San Francisco Giants in 2004. In 2005, he pitched in 11 games with 5 starts. His record was 2–1 with a 1.85 ERA for the San Francisco Giants' Arizona Rookie League team. Martis began the 2006 season with Augusta in the Low A South Atlantic League, where he accrued a 6–4 record and 3.64 ERA in 15 starts.Washington Nationals
On July 28, 2006, the Nationals acquired Martis from the San Francisco Giants for veteran left-handed reliever Mike Stanton. Martis joined the Savannah Sand Gnats of the South Atlantic League on August 1. After going 1–1 with a 3.80 ERA in four starts at Savannah, Martis was promoted to the High-A Potomac Nationals. He pitched two games in Potomac, giving up 4 earned runs in 12 innings. He ended the season with one appearance for the Double-A Harrisburg Senators, allowing 7 runs in 5 innings.In, Martis pitched for Potomac the entire season. In 26 starts and one relief appearance, he logged a 4.23 ERA over 151 innings, striking out 108 batters while issuing 52 walks.
Martis started the 2008 in Harrisburg. After going 4–4 with a 3.98 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP in 14 starts, he was promoted on June 21 to Triple-A Columbus, where he went 1–2 with a 3.02 ERA in 7 starts, striking out 42 batters and walking 17. He was selected as a member of the World Team for the All-Star Futures Game at Yankee Stadium.
Martis was called up to the Nationals on September 2, with the intent of assigning him to the bullpen. However, an injury to starter Collin Balester opened a spot for Martis in the starting rotation. He made his major league debut September 4, against the Atlanta Braves. He gave up 2 runs in 5 innings, earning the loss. He struck out the first batter he faced, Gregor Blanco. Chipper Jones got the first hit off Martis. In his first plate appearance, he drew a walk from Braves rookie James Parr, who, like Martis, was also making his first major-league appearance. Martis struck out Parr in Parr's first at-bat earlier in the game. Martis got his first major league win on September 23, 2008, against the Florida Marlins.
On May 2, 2009, against the St. Louis Cardinals, Martis pitched his first career complete game, the Nationals' first complete game since Pedro Astacio's in 2006 against Atlanta.
Martis was designated for assignment on January 24, 2011. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Syracuse on February 2. He elected free agency following the season on November 2.
Pittsburgh Pirates
On November 23, 2011, Martis signed a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.Minnesota Twins
On June 27, 2012, Martis was traded to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for cash or a player to be named later. On November 20, he re-signed with the Twins organization on a minor league contract. He had his contract selected to the major league roster on September 9, 2013, In innings in the majors, he struck out 7, working to a 5.59 ERA. He was sent outright to the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings on October 2. He elected free agency following the season on October 7.Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions
On February 26, 2014, Martis signed with the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. He was 8–7 with a 3.15 ERA in 28 games, 23 of them starts. He became a free agent following the season.Bridgeport Bluefish
On May 20, 2015, Martis signed with the Bridgeport Bluefish of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. He made one start for the Bluefish, taking the loss after allowing eight earned runs on seven hits with one strikeout over of an inning. Martis was released by the team on June 1.Lincoln Saltdogs
On June 6, 2015, Martis signed with the Lincoln Saltdogs of the American Association of Professional Baseball. In 17 games for Lincoln, he compiled a 6–3 record and 3.74 ERA with 79 strikeouts across 106 innings pitched. Martis became a free agent following the season.On February 15, 2016, Martis re-signed with the Saltdogs. In 24 games, he registered a 9–8 record and 3.34 ERA with 93 strikeouts over innings pitched. Martis became a free agent after the season.
Baltimore Orioles
Following the 2017 World Baseball Classic, Martis signed a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles on April 6. In 8 games for the Triple-A Norfolk Tides, he recorded a 4.38 ERA with 8 strikeouts across innings pitched. Martis was released by the Orioles organization on July 24.Lincoln Saltdogs (second stint)
On July 27, 2017, Martis re-signed with the Lincoln Saltdogs of the American Association. In 7 games, he threw innings and posted a 4–1 with a 2.01 ERA and 32 strikeouts.On February 17, 2018, Martis re-signed with the Saltdogs. In 25 games, he accumulated a 3–5 record and 5.01 ERA with 32 strikeouts across innings of work.
On February 14, 2019, Martis re-signed with the Saltdogs. In 22 games for Lincoln, he struggled to a 2–7 record and 6.44 ERA with 38 strikeouts and 2 saves across innings pitched. Martis was released by the Saltdogs on November 19.
Amsterdam Pirates
On February 23, 2020, Martis signed with Amsterdam Pirates of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. In 11 games for the team, he recorded a 2.63 ERA with 16 strikeouts and 1 save across innings of relief.On February 25, 2021, Martis re-signed with Amsterdam. In 11 games, he posted a 6–0 record with a 0.91 ERA with 51 strikeouts over innings pitched.
On February 11, 2022, Martis re-signed with Amsterdam for a third consecutive season. In 17 games for Amsterdam, he compiled a 6–1 record and 1.22 ERA with 72 strikeouts and 3 saves across innings of work. Martis became a free agent after the season.
Neptunus
On March 7, 2023, Martis signed with the Neptunus of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. In 17 starts for the Rotterdam team, he had an 8–3 record and 2.12 ERA with 88 strikeouts across innings pitched.Martis led the league with 15 wins, 7 shutouts, and innings pitched in 2025, also ranking in the top 10 in ERA and strikeouts.
International career
Martis has pitched for the Netherlands in international tournaments. He pitched a no-hitter against Panama in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, with the game on March 10 stopped in the 7th inning due to the mercy rule. He played for the Dutch in the 2013, 2017, and 2023 WBCMartis played for the Netherlands in the European Championship in 2007, 2016, 2021, 2023, and 2025. He earned the win in the 2025 championship game.
Martis played for the Netherlands in the Africa/Europe 2020 Olympic Qualification tournament. He also pitched in the 2024 WBSC Premier12.