Russell Martin could have gone just about anywhere last offseason, but when all was said and done, he went home. The Toronto-born catcher inked a lucrative five-year, $82MM contract with the Blue Jays, turning down a field of suitors headlined by two large market teams. As one of the winter’s top prizes on the open market, Martin says that he was at ease knowing that he would wind up with a quality contract from a desirable team. 
“It wasn’t stressful or anything. [Free agency] has never really been a stressful process for me,” Martin told MLBTR at the Blue Jays’ Spring Training complex in Dunedin, Florida. “I don’t have any kids or anything like that. I don’t have any family, so there’s nothing for me to answer to. The ability for me to play at home, for the team I grew up cheering for, that always had a good ring to it for me. The other options were [the Dodgers] and the Cubs, and those are really good places to play, so it was all positive for me. I really enjoyed the process this time.”
In addition to the Dodgers and Cubs, the Pirates made an effort to retain the catcher and the Mariners also got into the mix. For some, free agency is nerve-wracking, but Martin had no reason to get worked up given that several teams were anxious to give him eight figures per year. Martin was, perhaps, less plugged into talks than your average player on the open market, telling MLBTR that he only instructed his agent to reach out to him when there were major developments.
At this stage, Martin is obviously settled in and well-acclimated with his Blue Jays club. Last spring, Martin’s No. 1 task was to get acquainted with a completely new set of pitchers. This spring, the Blue Jays have a few new arms (including J.A. Happ) but Martin was happy not to have to start from scratch.
“Things are easier this year because I had a whole new pitching staff when I first got here. This year, I only had to focus on a few guys instead of like 20 guys. This year is a lot easier and things are a lot smoother. I can spend time with the new guys but still continue to build relationships with the guys that were here last year,” Martin explained.
Thanks to his long-term pact with Toronto, Martin shouldn’t have to think about the prospect of free agency again until after the 2019 season, at the earliest.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
At the time I was hoping the Sox would sign Martin but after watching Swihart for a year I see why they passed. Swihart will be a much better player than Martin shortly, maybe even this season, and the Jays will be stuck with Martin’s decline years and his awful contract. Just another example of why my Red Sox are the best run team in the AL!
Wow typical Red Sox fan. Did you see the Red Sox mentioned? It was down to 3 teams, none of which were the Red Sox, but you’re glad the Red Sox “passed”? Delusional much? Martin’s contract will be a dream compared to the Hanley/Panda/Price deals. Again you’re delusional. But most Red Sox fans are.
Yeah, the Sox look like full blown mensa geniuses after the Sandoval and Ramirez signings. Speaking of paying for a player’s declining years. Lol. And that’s not even factoring in the nearly quarter billion Price contract. Wow. Get a grip.
Oh come on now… Sandoval and Hanley just had down years, they’ll both be back in form this year. Price is an absolute stud ace pitcher. He’s the kind of guy you overpay for. Not a decent catcher like Martin who will break down just like every 30+ year old non PED catcher
Panda is in fine “form” for sure. Lol. They are both talented players, but I see last year as more of the beginning of their respective declines rather than just down years.
See, this is why I don’t let my fan allegiance out. I won’t to be considered someone that can have intelligent, objective discussion. I abhor those of you that simply say “lol ur team sux!”
want*
Because they made the playoffs 1 time in the last 6 seasons with one of the highest pay rolls?
last place last 2 years, dumpster signings in hanley and pablo… yea, very well run indeed…
last place last 2 years, dumpster signings in hanley/pablo… yea, very well run indeed…
See also: Matsuzaka, Daisuke; Crawford, Carl: Gonzalez, Adrian.
Red Sox are another big spending team that an over pay players and eat bad contracts, like the Yankees and Dodgers. The team Toronto has built under a limited payroll is easily the better managed one. Just look at the contracts for Bautista and Incarnation over the last five years. Or the trades for Donaldson and Devon Travis.
Let’s be honest here….Swihart will be LUCKY to be even at Martin’s caliber one day. It’s not etched in stone yet, so don’t go showboating anything when the dude still has big BIG shoes to fill. As far as the rest of your team, they have a lot of potential and a lot of talent but unless their rotation gives them quality then they just be stuck trying to acquire better starters next offseason. I’d say the Price contract makes more sense then the Scherzer one but these 30+ year old players are being overpaid like crazy in general.
P.S. – the Jays team against the Red Sox right now is a no brainer on who has more talent and a better opportunity to win the division.
Oh, and the Martin contract isn’t about his production at the plate it’s about making the Jays pitchers winners….and Russel is the best one in the game to do that.
The Red Sox are no where close to even being the best team in the AL East let alone the whole AL. Their pitching sucks besides Price. They only have a few players that are even worth having and if you want to look at terrible contracts look at your own team. Sandoval was so bad last year that he had to stop switch hitting. Red Sox fans never understand that their players decrease in talent too, they think that every bad year one of their players have is just a down year and they’ll bounce back, not that the player is just not good anymore. Don’t expect the Red Sox to even have a winning record this year.
@bigpapi4ever
The Red Sox are probably one of the better teams when it comes to grooming young talent (either through the draft, or trading for prospects), but they’re not too good when it comes to free agent signings.
Hanley and Panda are 2 reasons why not a single person should believe that statement
I cant tell if he’s really sad, or a bad a$$ loner. “I have no family, I have no children. I have money and baseball. Thats all I need”
I vote bad ass loner.
I think when he said he has ‘no family’, he meant ‘no children’. I’m fairly certain he’s already married.
Don’t ruin this for me.
Smart man. Just say no to the cubs.
Red Sox best run team? Haha you should be a stand up comedian. What about the porcello 85 million dollar extention. That was just as brilliant as the Pablo deal.