| Russell Martin, believe it or not, is headed to Pittsburgh. (Getty Images) |
Is it possible the Pirates of all teams have out-bid the Yankees for a notable free agent? Maybe so: Pittsburgh has agreed to terms with free-agent catcher Russell Martin, who spent the last two seasons in the Bronx. CBSSports.com Insider Jon Heyman confirms the original report b y FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal. Heyman also reports the deal, once finalized, will be for two years at a total cost of $17 million.
Martin, 29, batted just .211 last season, but his substantial secondary skills (21 homers, 53 walks in 485 plate appearances) lifted his OPS to an acceptable .713. As well, as a right-handed batter, Martin didn't benefit overmuch from playing his home games at Yankee Stadium. In parts of seven major-league seasons, Martin owns a career line of .260/.352/.399. He's also regarded as a skilled handler of pitchers.
Getting out of the AL East and into the NL Central also won't hurt in terms of Martin's performance.
Last season, Pittsburgh catchers combined to hit .217/.299/.385, which, as OPS goes, ranked 11th in the National League. No more Rod Barajas goes a long way toward addressing that problem, and a combo of Martin and Michael McKenry behind the plate constitutes a significant upgrade.
As for the mighty Yankees, they're obviously now in need of a new starting catcher.
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