Fernando Martinez was once the prize of the Mets’ farm system. He received a $1.3 million signing bonus when he was just a teenager, and (via Hardball Talk) was ranked by Baseball America as a top-30 prospect in 2007, 2008, and 2009. (He was the Mets’ top-ranked prospect in 2008 and 2009.) He was so highly touted that when he made his major-league debut in 2009, we wrote a post titled “The Fernando Martinez Era Is Upon Us.” Needless to say, the Fernando Martinez Era hasn’t gone as planned: Thanks to various injuries, Martinez has appeared in just 385 games over the past five seasons between the majors and minors. (That’s 77 games per year.) He’s appeared in only 47 games with the Mets in his career, including eleven last season. (His slash line over those 47 games: .183/.250/.290.) And now, according to Adam Rubin, the Mets have placed him on waivers to open up a roster spot. If he clears waivers, the Mets could option him to triple-A Buffalo. But considering that claiming Martinez doesn’t carry much of a risk, and considering he’s still just 23 years old, it’s possible some team could take a chance on him. [Hardball Talk/NBC Sports via ESPN New York]