When the Mets signed JD Martinez At the end of March he was seen as the missing piece in the starting line-up. A proven, power-hitting veteran who could start any day as the designated hitter, providing some protection for players like Pete Alonso, Francisco LindorAnd Brandon Nimmo.
After a brief ramp-up period, Martinez was a solid hitter in the middle of the order, posting a .777 OPS with 16 home runs and 65 RBI during the month of August. But he cooled off significantly down the stretch and in the playoffs, hitting just .109 with a .368 OPS. In the postseason, where Martinez has thrived in the past, he hit just .222 with no home runs and three RBIs and was in and out of the starting lineup.
Martinez signed with the Mets to a one-year deal worth $12 million, with much of that money deferred, but now that he’s a free agent again, if the Mets bring him back before 2025, let’s see…
WHY IT MIGHT MAKE SENSE TO LET MARTINEZ LEAVE
Martinez, who turns 38 next August, is a career .863 OPS player, but over the past four seasons that OPS has dropped to .807. He’s still an above-average player, but his numbers are slipping a bit and it’s fair to wonder how things will continue to develop.
Perhaps the biggest reason to be cautious about keeping Martinez is that he is exclusively a designated hitter option at this point in his career. His days in the outfield are over, and it’s fair to wonder whether or not the Mets should “clog” their DH spot with one player. Having Martinez in the lineup gives Carlos Mendoza much less flexibility when it comes to the different combinations and alignments he can use.
Martinez’s cold streak in the playoffs was also very alarming, as the Mets added him thinking he would be a clutch performer come October. But he had just four hits in the playoffs, all singles, and often found himself out of the lineup, appearing in eight of the club’s 13 postseason games.
WHY IT MIGHT MAKE SENSE TO KEEP MARTINEZ
There are a lot of variables at play when it comes to the Mets’ approach to the free agency and trade markets, but having a gap-to-gap hitter like Martinez in the lineup could go a long way. Sure, he struggled, but Martinez has career averages over 162 games, 33 home runs, 106 RBI and 38 doubles.
Just a year ago, in 2023, Martinez hit 33 home runs and drove in 103 runs for the Dodgers. Water will always find its level, so Martinez could be in for a bounce-back season in 2025.
Another thing to consider is that Martinez could be brought back on a new one-year contract for around $9-10 million, which could be cheaper than many of the other high-profile bats on the market. And having Martinez back for one season won’t hinder the development of younger hitters like… Mark Vientos. In fact, having a veteran like Martinez, who has seen it all, could only help a hitter like Vientos reach his sky-high potential as a right-handed power hitter.
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The Mets have money to spend and World Series ambitions, and with both of those factors in mind, it’s hard to see Martinez coming back in 2025.
The veteran had some nice moments as a Met, but his production was never quite what the club thought they were getting when he signed.
The best course of action would be to let Martinez go and spend that money elsewhere to build a contending roster.
