J.D. Martinez through the years (HOU, DET, & ARI)
What some people forget about J.D. Martinez is that while he wasn’t always healthy, he did have the benefit of playing in Arizona which amplified his numbers substantially. 2015 was the only year in which he was able to play in at least 124 games. Martinez did not make any real noise in his first three seasons playing in Houston. It wasn’t until 2014 when people started to take notice.
2015 was a year in which Martinez finally established himself as one of the games better players before sliding back to mediocrity the following season. Last year was Martinez’s best. First, he started the year off in Detroit where he slashed .305/16/39/2 in 57 games. His power seemed to be coming through and at just the right time. On July 18, the Tigers admitted that rebuilding the team for the future was what they needed to do and off went Martinez to Arizona.
In just 62 games, Martinez was able to turn transform into an entirely different player slashing .302/29/65/2. In five more games, Martinez was able to slug 13 more home runs and knock in 26 more RBI’s. Did it help to play in a different stadium and perhaps be surrounded by teammates of a higher caliber? It certainly didn’t hurt. Who wouldn’t want someone like Paul Goldschmidt on their team? A first baseman who can hit 35+ homers, 120+ RBI’s and has the ability to steal 30+ bases and hit over .300? Yes, please.