MLB Rumors: J.D. Martinez, Mets Agree to 1-Year, $12M Contract amid Angels Buzz
March 22, 2024
After spending 2023 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, J.D. Martinez is going to play for the New York Mets next season.
Per Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the six-time All-Star has agreed to a $12 million deal with the Mets.
A significant portion of the deal includes deferred money through 2028, per Andy Martino of SNY:
Andy Martino @martinonycMets were always only going to sign JD Martinez if the deal became irresistible . If got there. Per league source: $4.5MM this year. $1.5MM a year deferred from 2034-38. Pending physical. <a href="https://twitter.com/JonHeyman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JonHeyman</a> first reported that they were in agreement .
As Martino noted, this reduces the luxury-tax penalty for this season.
Heyman reported earlier on Thursday that Martinez also received a contract offer from the Los Angeles Angels, but he ultimately chose to take his talents to the east coast.
A sluggish end to the 2022 season with the Boston Red Sox led to some questions about how much Martinez had left in the tank. He wound up signing a one-year deal with the Dodgers as a free agent.
The deal paid off for Martinez and the Dodgers. He had a terrific bounce-back campaign with a .271/.321/.572 slash line, 33 homers and 103 RBI in 113 games.
Martinez was named to the All-Star team for the third consecutive season. The Miami native is best served as a DH at this stage of his career, but the ability to hit for average and power makes it easy for the Mets to expect he will maintain value in 2024.
Despite being at an age (36) when most players are on the decline, he seems like he should be able to keep hitting at a high level. He had the highest average exit velocity (93.4 mph), launch angle (17 degrees) and second-highest barrel percentage (17.4) of his career, per StatCast.
This was a good offseason for a player of Martinez's skill set to become a free agent. He's limited by virtue of not having any real defensive value, but teams didn't have a deep crop of position players to choose from.
Even factoring in his lackluster finish to the 2022 season, Martinez owns a .278/.338/.509 slash line over the past three years. He's still a potential difference-maker at this late stage of his career in any lineup.
This is an interesting move for the Mets because it at least indicates they view themselves as a potential playoff contender in 2024.
If that's the case, upgrading their production at DH was a necessity. Daniel Vogelbach, who signed with the Toronto Blue Jays as a free agent, was their primary designated hitter last season. He hit .233/.339/.404 with 13 homers in 275 at-bats.
DJ Stewart was penciled in at DH going into this season. He's coming off a solid .244/.333/.506 slash line with 11 homers in 2023, but it was in a small sample size of 185 plate appearances.
In five seasons with the Baltimore Orioles from 2018 to 2022, he hit .213/.327/.400 with 26 homers in 622 plate appearances. He's probably closer to being that type of hitter than what he showed in 2023.
Martinez gives the Mets stability at designated hitter going into this season. He can slot in with the top hitters in the lineup, including Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo, to make a formidable group.
Even though the Mets are still probably third in the NL East behind the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies, they have a roster capable of winning 85 games as presently constructed. It only took 84 wins for the Arizona Diamondbacks to clinch the final wild-card spot in the NL last season.