Victor Martinez wants to stay, but just how badly is an open question:
“A lot of guys like to be free agents, but I’m going to be really honest on this answer. I don’t want to be jumping around, I don’t want to go somewhere else.”
But:
“As soon as the season starts, I don’t want to be talking about numbers
or be talking about something that can distract me from the game and
distract my teammates. That’s the last thing I want
with this great team they’ve put together. Maybe, who knows, they come
to me in spring training with something. Honestly, I’m all open now until the season starts. As soon as the season starts, I barely talk to my mom.”
Martinez is 100% genuine about not liking disruption — he was basically in tears when the Tribe traded him last year — but at the same time, if security and certainty is what he’s after, how can he simply shut off all negotiation after the season starts? Doing so would create more uncertainty for him, not less.
I understand that a lot of players don’t want to negotiate during the
season, but how much of that is about avoiding distraction
and how much of that is a leverage thing?
In other news, dong a Google Image Search for “Victor Martinez” brings back unexpected results.
