Cleveland Indians outfielder Leonys Martin had a bacterial infection that attacked his organs and was life-threatening, but he is in stable condition and improving, Indians president Chris Antonetti said.
Antonetti addressed the team Monday and said that Martin, who has been hospitalized at Cleveland Clinic for nearly a week, is recovering and his outlook is good, but that "progress will be measured in weeks, not days."
Antonetti said that Martin had a bacterial infection that entered his bloodstream and damaged his internal organs. Antonetti said the organs started to shut down, and it was "severe."
"Thankfully, he's made a lot of progress in the last 24 to 36 hours," Antonetti said. "He's regained a lot of the organ function. We're optimistic. He's on a good path right now, and we're hopeful that he'll have a full recovery. But he's got a long path to get back to full health in front of him. It's going to take some time."
The Indians acquired Martin, 30, from the Tigers on July 31 just before the non-waiver deadline. He became ill last Tuesday night and did not play Wednesday. On Thursday, the Indians placed him on the 10-day disabled list. On Friday, some Indians players wrote Martin's name on their hats, and manager Terry Francona asked fans to pray for him.
"What I would say, if you believe in saying prayers and things like that, keep him in your thoughts," Francona said.
In six games with the Indians, Martin is hitting .333 (5-for-15) with two homers and four RBIs.
Antonetti said he did not know whether Martin would play again this season.
"I haven't even thought about baseball," Antonetti said. "He's got a long path to get to full health in front of him. It's going to take him some time, but we're in a much better spot today than we were 24 to 36 hours ago."
