WHY RUSSELL NEEDS A STRONG START, OR ELSE

Russell Martin may be new on the New York Yankees, but "distractions" and injury aside, he could be a real nice fit.

The Yanks were smart about this signing. You never want to mess with a hip injury and for them to sign Martin to 1 year is a good test. If he's healthy and plays the way he did early on, life in New York could be pretty good for Russell Martin. If he starts slow, the fans will become impatient and leave him quick and rally behind the already popular Jesus Montero.

Jesus has a following and he's not even on the major league roster yet. All those people can't be wrong. Martin, although he's been "tapped" the head catcher, is the underdog in this equation.

So what does Martin have to do to win over the Bronx fans? Play hard but stay healthy for starters. When Russell was asked about his health last week in spring training and he told a group of reporters he still wasn't 100 percent, I'm not going to lie, I was immediately aggravated. You can read it HERE brought to you by The Bleacher Report. Notice Cashman came out within 6 hours to fudge together alittle damage control and told everyone that it's going to alright.

I like Martin, check out these numbers pre-injury. .282 Average his rookie year, and he won the Rookie of the Year award in that same year, 2006. In 2007, he had 19 home runs and an average over .290. If he can get back to that, we have a good replacement behind the plate. He he can't, look for the fans to get on him fast. Unfortunately for Martin, there won't be time for him to slump. His only goal will be to start hot and stay hot. Otherwise, Yankeeland will welcome the coming of Jesus, and fast.

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