Email a copy of 'Free Agent Profile: Russell Martin' to a friend
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By Steve Adams | at
Email a copy of 'Free Agent Profile: Russell Martin' to a friend
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Ray Gritton
“That .290 average was supported by a career-high .336 BABIP and should regress toward his career mark of .289 next year.”
Oh no, not the dredded .001 batting average regression!
ubercubsfan
He’s referring to the BABIP regressing to .289, not his average. His average will be at around .240-.250.
Steve Adams
The .289 is his career BABIP mark, not career average, which is the regression to which I was referring. However, I did word it poorly, and have updated it.
Hurdled Again
This was unclear, but I assume he meant the .289 as his BABIP, which is a significant difference.
todd Rainey
McCann was 29 when he signed his deal not 32 like martin. Martin offensive season I think is a contract year fluke. He misses 30+ games 5 years in a row. The signing team will regret this deal in year 2. Im starting to hope the pirates dont blow the money jar on one player. Allow Cervelli and Stewart to catch and spend the leftovers on pitching
IjustloveBaseball
Yeah, especially a team like the Pirates. They can’t afford to be locked into a bad contract with an aging catcher. Cervelli is decent and Stewart’s an ok backup, what you said, spend the money on pitching.
Matt He.
130 games a year for a catcher is perfectly acceptable. His ability to frame a pitch, keep the ball in front of him, and ability to handle a pitching staff makes him worth it and more.
IjustloveBaseball
It really wouldn’t be wise to sign Martin to a 5-year deal at around 15 million annually given his age and the fact that he’s a catcher. He had an outstanding year last year, both offensively and defensively, but if you look at his career, he has been pretty hit and miss at the plate. I wouldn’t mind signing him to a 3-year 45 million dollar deal or even a 4-year pact at around 50-60 mil, I just don’t think that 5th year is the best investment.
Steve Adams
The final year of a free agent deal is almost never wise, but it’s usually the tipping point to get the player in the organization. If four teams think Martin can hold up well for 3-4 years and are willing to offer four guaranteed seasons, which is my expectation, the team that blinks and goes five probably gets him.
IjustloveBaseball
Right, I get that. We’ll see when he signs, but I guess teams are betting he can be a plus-player for at least 4 years. Wow.
Rally Weimaraner
Martin’s value, much more so than McCann’s, is tied to his defensive skills. How many full time catchers are 35 or older? Martin’s bat isn’t good enough to play 1B or DH later in his career, I expect year 4 and 5 of this deal to look really bad
Mikenmn
Fascinating career arc. Started off terrifically, leveled off to the point where two organizations with plenty of money, LA and the Yankees, didn’t want to commit the dollars, now going to cash in.
Portland Micro-Brewers
To be fair LA non-tendered him when McCourt was slashing spending. I think the Yankees were trying hard to get under the cap when they let Martin walk. Though I always took that with a grain of salt.
Mikenmn
His last two years in LA he had an ops+ of 86, and his power had basically disappeared, and he was injured. And, you rightfully point out, there was McCourt. Yankees made a misjudgement, but if you look at even the two years he spent in New York, they weren’t really a platform for a huge contract. I’m glad for the guy. Hard worker.
BlueSkyLA
The offers he got from the Dodgers and Yankees were virtually the same. The Yankees guaranteed a bit more. That might have made the difference for Martin, or he might have been looking for a way out of LA.
BlueSkyLA
LA non-tendered him coming off what could have been a career-ending injury. The Dodgers then made him an offer nearly identical to the one he accepted from the Yankees. The McCourt ownership figured into a lot of deals, but not this one.