New York Yankees looking to sign on Russell Martin – MLB Update
New York Yankees and Russell Martin’s agent are having discussions to seal a deal, reports a leading sports website. The source claims that the Yankees’ reached the catcher for a possible return engagement.
Martin has also shown his interest in getting re-signed by the Yankees. The catcher had a decent time on the plate in the past season. Although he batted only .211 with a .311 on-base percentage, he smacked a career best 21 home-runs in the tough American
League East Division.
The 29-year-old raised his game considerable in second half of the season. After September 3, Martinez hit a .277 average with seven home-runs and 17 RBI’s, making a strong impression on the Manager Joe Girardi in closing stages of the season. However, just
like his peers, Martinez also went cold during the playoffs.
It seems New York is the best landing spot for Martin right now. He made $7.5 million with the Yankees last season. The two parties had discussions about a two year extension to Martin’s contract possibility last spring. However, the Yankees are also trying
to cut down their expense to lower their payroll to $189 million by the end of 2013 season.
“We’ve had some initial conversations and they’ve expressed interest in bringing him back, but nothing substantial to date other than that,” said Matt Colleran, Martin’s rep. “The organization, he loves it, working with the staff, manager, coaches and players.
It was all very positive. We’ll see what happens as we move along here.”
“He had a rough first half but he battled his way to get out of it,” Colleran said. “Based on his career, the player you saw the second half if more indicative of the player he is.”
There is no shortage of young prospects in Yankees’ Minor League systems. Austin Romine and Gary Sanchez have been making headlines for quite some time now. The 20-year-old Sanchez, in particular, has made a very good impression on the skipper Girardi.
Martin, on the other hand, will be looking to learn from his mistakes to bring some sort of consistency in the next season.
Tags: