FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Victor Martinez has been one of the premier offensive catchers in baseball since 2004. Martinez burst onto the scene with the Cleveland Indians at age 25 that spring, hitting .283/.359/.492 with 23 home runs and a 125 OPS+. He produced an excellent 10.3 BB% rate and .358 wOBA. For his efforts, the switch-hitting backstop was named the American League Silver Slugger award at his position and represented the league at the All-Star game. Martinez, who signed with Cleveland as an international free agent back in 1996, then maintained his excellent offensive output for the next three seasons. He posted OPS+ totals of 130, 121 and 127 from 2005-2007, respectively, bashing 61 home runs during that time span. Despite his defensive shortcomings, only a handful of catchers were more valuable to their respective clubs than he was to the Indians from ???04 through ???07. Martinez was worth at least 4.4 WAR during the aforementioned four-year stretch, compiling 19.4 wins total. His 5.4 win performance in 2005, when he hit .305/.378/.475 with 20 home runs, was his best overall WAR mark, but he was remarkably consistent throughout. The Indians reaped the benefits of their international scouting efforts from the previous decade, as he dramatically exceeded his annual salary in on-field performance while under team control. Martinez was bothered by a hamstring issue and underwent an elbow procedure during a disastrous 2008, though, and fell on the wrong side of the FanGraphs??? dollars earned/made scale for the first time of his career. He managed only two home runs in 294 plate appearances, producing an anemic line of .278/.337/.365 and full-season-low 85 OPS+. One of several key Cleveland players to miss significant time on the disabled list, just a myriad of injuries limited him to only 73 games. Opposing pitchers exploited his physical ailments, challenging him more than in the past due to his sudden power outage; his .086 ISO was by far the lowest total of his pro tenure. As a result, his walk rate dropped to a career-worst 8.3%. Headed into spring training this year, many pundits predicted the Indians to win the American League Central under the assumption that Martinez and teammate Travis Hafner would rebound offensively. However, a number of skeptics had doubts that either player, especially Hafner and his ???old-man??? skills, would perform at their once-outstanding levels ever again. Well, the Tribe has certainly gotten off to another miserable start. The former is back, though, doing everything possible to help his club stay afloat. His defense at catcher is still less than stellar and he now should be more of a first baseman (he has played 15 games at first base, 17 behind the plate), but the power in his bat has returned from the dead. Martinez, 30, is currently hitting .385/.458/.631 with a 179 OPS+. He also already surpassed his ???08 home run total, bashing six bombs in his first 122 plate appearances. Headed into Sunday, he ranks third in the junior circuit in batting average and on-base percentage, fourth in OPS (1.089), sixth in slugging percentage and ninth in walks (18). He is tied for sixth in the majors in wOBA (.464) as well. Only three players???Evan Longoria, Kevin Youkilis and Jason Bay???have provided more batting runs above a replacement-level hitter than Martinez, whose produced 15.6 runs. He takes a hit for his defense, but he has been worth 1.8 WAR; along with four other players, he is tied for fourth in the league in terms of actual value. Clearly, the veteran slugger has put to bed any concerns about any nagging injury worries. A .390 batting average on balls in plays will come down to earth, as will his current walk rate, but the two-time All-Star is driving the ball again and is a legitimate offensive force whose bat will play at any position. Martinez has been overshadowed, but his bounce back is one of the better story lines around. It is time for the nation to take notice.