New Red Sox reliever Chris Martin: ‘My control is something that I take pride in’
The Red Sox added a much needed piece to their bullpen in reliever Chris Martin. The former Red Sox prospect returns home to the organization that signed him back in 2011.
“I’ve been a part of the organization before. It’s kind of nice coming into a place with some people you’re familiar with,” said Martin. “The tradition is amazing, Fenway. It’s kind of gone full circle. It was a pretty easy decision for me.”
Martin will join recently added Joely Rodriguez and Kenley Jansen to a bullpen that desperately needed reinforcements. The 6-foot-8 hurler is coming off a successful 2022 season where he spent time with both the Cubs and Dodgers.
New Red Sox lefty will be a crucial piece of bullpen
The 36-year-old struck out 34 and walked just one in 24 2/3 innings after the Dodgers acquired him from the Cubs at the 2022 Trade Deadline. In 60 appearances overall in '22, the seven-year veteran struck out 74 and walked five in 56 innings and went 4-1 with a 3.05 ERA.
Boston will be adding a reliever who doesn’t walk batters, which will be a breath of fresh air. Martin’s control is something he takes pride in.
“My control is something that I take pride in,” Martin said during his introductory press conference. “I try to work really hard and that’s just how I pitch. I just want to go out and compete and go right after guys. Once the ball leaves my hand, I can’t control what happens. So that’s kind of how I go about it mindset wise.”
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The Red Sox front office understands how important it is to fix the bullpen as the club heads into 2023.
“Obviously the bullpen is very important. I’ve been on some teams with some good ones,” said Martin. “They were explaining to me how many times they lost late in the games. When you lose that many games late, the record's not going to show. Those things can be fixed and those are actually, in my mind, minor things that can be fixed. Just go out there and throw zeroes and the bullpen feeds off each other and [can] get in a good groove and run with it.”
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The Red Sox still have work to do before the start of Spring Training. Jansen, Rodriguez and Martin are good starting points for Alex Cora’s new bullpen. Martin might be the most important signing the Red Sox have made this winter, based off his control and ability to keep runners off base.
Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisHenrique
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