I'll be the first to come out and say that I did not want the Red Sox to trade for Victor Martinez. I didn't think he'd really improve the offense at all. I thought he'd give the Sox some mediocre stats from behind the plate and at first base, but really wouldn't make much of an impact.
I'll be the first to say I was wrong.
Status for 2010: The Red Sox hold a $7.5M club option for V-Mart, but have yet to exercise it. Theo Epstein has said recently that Martinez will be the Sox's catcher next year, so the option will be exercised soon.
Sitting in the No. 3 spot, Martinez came out hot and just hit the ball. He racked up a .912 OPS in 56 games with the Sox. He didn't walk as much as he was with the Indians, but who can blame the guy? He was acquired to come over and hit the ball in the three-hole.
Martinez was also pretty lucky, as his BABIP sat at .350 with the Sox. Just a little on the high side. But his power stayed consistent with the switch. It seems like he was comfortable at Fenway Park, as his average rose from .265 at Jacobs Field to a .304 average in his new Boston duds.
I was really pleased with V-Mart's production with the Red Sox, but the unfortunate thing is that he's not a long-term solution to the Sox's catching problems. He'll probably be good for another couple of years, but where do the Sox stand after that? Do they exercise his option for 2010 and then aim for Joe Mauer for 2011? If V-Mart was 10 years younger, we'd be all set, but I don't imagine we'll see him as a Sox for too many more years.