While Tino Martinez was a fine major leaguer for most of his 16 years, he’s also now easily the weakest performer to receive a plaque in Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park. The former first baseman was given his day today as the first of four additions to the Park this year, joining Joe Torre, Goose Gossage and Paul O’Neill. Gossage’s day will come tomorrow. Bernie Williams is expected to be added next year.
Tino’s plaque focuses more on two singular events than his career numbers in seven seasons with the Yankees and leaves out the other nine years altogether, though that’s typical for the Yankee plaques.
Martinez drove in 100 runs in five of his seven seasons with the Yankees, but it was the late 90’s… everyone drove in 100 runs. In 1999, he was one of four Yankees to do so. His only season in the top 10 in the AL in OPS was 1997, when he finished second in the MVP balloting on the strength of his 141 RBI on a first-place team. But he never finished in the top 10 in WAR, he never won a Gold Glove (or deserved to) for all of his “superlative defense” and he was just a lifetime .233/.321/.351 hitter in 99 postseason games.
So, yeah, fine player. And the Yankees are free to do what they want with their park. It just doesn’t seem quite right that Martinez is in and Willie Randolph and Graig Nettles aren’t, not to mention some of the deceased Hall of Famers also not included.
