Red Sox: J.D. Martinez caps outstanding April with multi-homer game

Boston Red Sox star J.D. Martinez had an April to remember

J.D. Martinez wasn’t expected to be in the Boston Red Sox lineup after exiting the previous night’s game with a migraine but he ended up causing headaches for the Texas Rangers pitching staff on Friday.

The Red Sox wasted no time breaking out of the mini-slump that plagued the lineup for the last few days. Each of the first four batters reached against Rangers starter Kohei Arihara, culminating in back-to-back home runs by Martinez and Xander Bogaerts.

It was the 24th time that Martinez and Bogaerts both homered in the same game, tied for the 16th-most by any duo in franchise history. Something tells me this pair will continue climbing that list.

Since I know you’re curious, the franchise record is held by Dwight Evans and Jim Rice, who homered in the same game a whopping 56 times. Probably not what you expected, right? Most would have guessed Manny and Papi or Ted Williams with any of the Hall of Fame players he teamed with. Dewey wasn’t known as a big-time power threat until later in his career but he and Rice played most of their careers together so the record makes sense when you consider the longevity.

Martinez went deep again to lead off the third inning with a 440-foot blast to center that put the Red Sox on top 5-1.

The multi-homer performance gave Martinez nine home runs this season. Only David Ortiz (2006) and Hanley Ramirez (2015) have hit more home runs in a season before the beginning of May in a Red Sox uniform – they share the record with 10 home runs.

Martinez leads the majors with nine home runs and 25 RBI, joining Jimmie Foxx (1940) as the only Red Sox players to lead in both categories entering May 1.

If he’s not on top, Martinez is at least among the elite in most offensive categories. He enters the day third in the American League with a .351 batting average and fifth with a .430 OBP. His .745 SLG, 1.175 OPS and 225 wRC+ trail only Mike Trout in the majors.

It’s still early but Martinez is at least starting the conversation about challenging for the Triple Crown. He made a valiant run at it in 2018 when he led the league with 130 RBI. He ultimately finished second behind Oakland’s Khris Davis in home runs and settled for being the runner-up for the batting title to teammate Mookie Betts, the AL MVP that year. We know Martinez is capable of producing at elite levels in all three categories and starting the season strong in the-top three in each of them gives him an outside shot at the rare achievement.

Martinez heard the critics chirping about his miserable 2020 season when he was arguably the worst player in the majors. He had no shortage of explanations for his struggles and insisted he would bounce back this season. That might have been an understatement. Martinez is on a mission to prove those doubters wrong and reclaim his status as one of the game’s best hitters.