After the 2011 season, the New York Yankees just had to have Russell Martin. They offered him a three year $20 million contract. Martin
didn’t sign. Instead he went with a one year $7.5 million deal and goes
into free agency at the end of this season. So now what? We’ve all
watched Martin this year, struggling at the plate. So, do the Yankees
re-sign him? And if so, for how long?
Let’s start with what we
already know about Martin. He is an average hitting catcher. He has
never hit over .300 in his career. That is common among catchers, with
the exception of a few guys like Ivan Rodriguez and Joe Mauer. Last
season, he hit .237. But he is a great defensive catcher. That’s
possibly why the Yankees snagged him in the first place. While I am not a
huge fan of Sabermetrics, his .994 fielding percentage this season is
impressive.
(In Photo: Mike Napoli)
I guess the biggest thing to consider is, what
are our other options as far as starting catchers and at what price.
AJ Pierzynski and Mike Napoli both become free agents at the end of
this season. Both are better hitters then Martin but Martin is a better
defensive catcher. So I guess we have to consider whether it is best to
have a good defensive catcher or a good hitting catcher. Of course we
could always default to having Chris Stewart being our everyday starting
catcher. We could also use Austin Romine or Francisco Cervelli.
Look, I like Martin. He is a gritty player. He can stop balls and gets
the runners out. To me, that is important to have in a catcher. But his
at bats often leave a lot to be desired. I do think it will be a
difficult decision when considering Martin’s contract. Will the Yankees
get their money’s worth if they re-sign him? Honestly, if they do
re-sign him, I don’t see it being more then a two-year deal and possibly
with a pay cut.
--Erica Morales, BYB Writer
Twitter: @e_morales1804
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