The San Diego Padres are preparing for their first spring training game, against the Seattle Mariners, on Friday. Of course, Opening Day isn’t until March 27 with a four-game series against the Atlanta Braves, so there’s still plenty of time for them to make trades to potentially strengthen the roster. Ryan Finkelstein of Just Baseball anticipates that they will strengthen their designated hitter position by signing 37-year-old J.D. Martinez to a one-year, $5 million contract with incentives.
“If Martinez wants to extend his career and play for a contender, perhaps there is a spot for him in the Padres’ lineup. “San Diego is clearly short on cash, and they have a hole to fill at DH,” he wrote. “Maybe Martinez takes a discount based on his past earnings to play for the Padres.”
Martinez, a six-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger, is coming off a rather ordinary season with the New York Mets. He had 434 at-bats, 102 hits, 46 runs scored, 69 RBI, and 16 home runs, batting.235/.320/.406. However, even if Martinez could only match those performances, he could outperform Tirso Ornelas, who is currently projected to be the team’s designated hitter.
According to FanGraphs predictions, Ornelas will have 299 at-bats, 72 hits, 35 runs scored, 36 RBI, eight home runs, and a slash line of.241/.303/.376.
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