Red Sox slugger J.D. Martinez has his swagger back and it’s just in time
The Boston Red Sox have been struggling to create offense this season and J.D. Martinez hasn’t been immune. That’s all changed and the DH has his mojo back.
The Red Sox had one of the most feared offenses in all the baseball last season. It didn’t matter what pitcher was on the mound or what the gameplan was, they made you pay. One of their biggest weapons was their powerhouse designated hitter, J.D. Martinez. Martinez had a career year last year and for much of the season was heavily involved in the MVP conversation.
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Sadly, this year has been the complete opposite for the Red Sox. Long gone are the big offensive innings, the 2-out clutch hits, and the painstaking at-bats. For much of the season, J.D. has been cold and hasn’t seemed to have had that killer instinct that we got used to in 2018. Last season when he would come to the plate no matter the situation it felt like the big man was going to make something happen.
Not so much the story in 2019. Though he’s had some strong at-bats it just hasn’t felt like the J.D. that we know and love. This season hasn’t been kind to Martinez or any of the Red Sox bats for what it’s worth. The tides they are a changing though and the big DH has found his mojo.
Just last night alone Martinez went 3-5 and had some strong looks at the plate that just gave the Red Sox that spark they’ve been looking for. Remember in Back to the Future when Chuck Berry’s cousin Marvin calls to tell him he has that new sound he’s been looking for? That’s what it felt like watching Matinez at the plate last night. He had that offensive sound that the Red Sox have been looking for.
Martinez has been long considered one of the more disciplined hitters in the game. He takes extensive batting practice and films everything. He’ll then go back an analyze his swing as well as the rest of his mechanics. He even has teammates coming to him to analyze how they look in the batter’s box. With the amount of work that he puts in it was just a matter of time before he got out of his funk.
It couldn’t come at a better time either as the Red Sox have a serious opportunity with an extended homestand to get back into the AL East race. Factor in J.D. getting back into the swing of things offensively with the resurgence of AL MVP Mookie Betts and surging upstart Michael Chavis and the Sox are looking good. Much like it did last year it seems like every game someone is contributing which is something the team has been lacking so far.
The offense of the Red Sox lives and dies with J.D. Martinez. That may sound dramatic and it probably is, but it isn’t far from the truth. Look at last year, when he was hot so was everyone else. He and Betts fed off each other all season long and it produced insane numbers offensively. Now, look at this season and how cold this offense has been and so has Martinez. When he’s cooking everyone else wants to get into the kitchen and make their own dishes.
Last night’s game, as well as tonight’s, have been just what the doctor ordered for this ailing offense. Patience at the plate, waiting for good pitches to hit or poor ones to lay off of and creating scoring opportunities. The runs began to pour in when the Red Sox went back to what delivered them a World Series crown last year and they were rewarded once again.
Next. Red Sox offense explodes with best performance of the season. dark
J.D. Martinez is a key cog in the wheel that is the Red Sox offense and he is beginning to look like his dangerous self once again. When he starts to get hot everyone else starts to get hot around him like a rising tide raising all ships. If he can get his game back to where it needs to be it will only be a matter of time before the rest of the team begins to hit as well and that means good things for the Boston Red Sox.