Victor Martinez passes physical to seal deal with Detroit
New Detroit Tigers catcher Victor Martinez has passed his physical, effectively finalizing his four-year $50 million contract, according to ESPN Deportes.
"It's official," said agent Will Polidor. "Victor passed the physical and he'll be back in Venezuela today."
Martinez was a "Type A" free agent, meaning that the Tigers must give up their first round draft pick to the Boston Red Sox as compensation for Martinez’s services. If the Tigers are able to sign a higher ranked Type A agent, then it will only cost them a second
round draft pick.
Victor Martinez is a career .300 hitter who has 1130 hits, 131 home runs and 638 runs batted in over his nine years in Major League Baseball. He is also a switch hitter and can give some more potency to a stale Tigers line-up.
Last season, the Tigers relied on Miguel Cabrera after Magglio Ordonez was injured with an ankle sprain. The decrease in power from Ordonez being on the disabled list hurt the Tigers’ chances of doing much during stretch time in late summer.
Not only is Martinez an excellent hitter, but his catching skills are some of the best in baseball. He has a career fielding percentage of .993, having made only 49 errors out of 6639 total chances over nine seasons between catching and first base
positions.
The acquisition of Martinez has added to an already busy off-season for the Tigers. They have already come to deals with third basemen Brandon Inge, whom they have locked up for two more years, shortstop Jhonny Peralta for two years and Joaquin Benoit for three
years.
Not only will Martinez help offensively and defensively, but his vast baseball knowledge and veteran presence will help bring stability to the Tigers’ pitching staff, making him an excellent addition to the Detroit Tigers club.
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