J.D. Martinez is expected to make his long-awaited New York Mets debut on Friday when the team opens a seven-game homestand against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Signed to a one-year, reported $12 million contract on March 23, Martinez wasn’t in spring training with the Mets. He needed time to prepare for the season, then dealt with a back issue.
In a pair of games at Triple-A Syracuse, Martinez was 3-for-8 with three runs driven in. He was recalled from Syracuse on Friday by New York, which designated infielder Zack Short for assignment.
With the Mets, Martinez is expected to bat behind Pete Alonso at designated hitter.
Manager Carlos Mendoza said earlier this week that barring a setback, Martinez would be in the lineup Friday. He will not be the everyday DH from the start.
“I’ll have a conversation with him, but out of the gate, I’m not gonna run this guy and DH him every day,” Mendoza said. “He’s gonna need some days, you know. I think it’s one of those where, like I said, I’ll sit down with him and put together a game plan here because it’s important. He’s too valuable for this team and we gotta take care of him.”
Martinez, 36, was an All-Star for the third season in a row last year, the sixth selection of his career and only one with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Martinez hit .271 with a .321 on-base percentage, a .572 slugging percentage, 33 homers and 103 RBIs over 113 games in 2023.
Martinez spent the previous five years in Boston, helping the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series, a year in which he led the majors with 130 RBIs.
Martinez played for the Houston Astros (2011-13), Detroit Tigers (2014-17) and the Arizona Diamondbacks (2017). In 1,522 career games, he has a .287/.350/.524 batting line with 315 home runs and 1,002 RBIs.
Without Martinez, the Mets were 13-11 entering play Friday.
Short, 28, is 1-for-9 with two runs and four strikeouts in 10 games this season. He is a career .172 hitter with 13 homers and 55 RBIs in 187 games with the Tigers (2021-23) and Mets.
