The discomfited relationship between the Cardinals and first baseman Tino Martinez could be over soon. The club is close to reaching an agreement with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on a deal that will send Martinez to the American League club.
The return on Martinez, who is from the Tampa Bay area, remains a matter of some contention. The Cardinals will receive a minor-league player, possibly from Tampa's 40-man roster. Righthanded pitchers Dewon Brazelton, 23, and Jason Standridge, 25, are potential candidates.
The meat and potatoes of the deal, however, has to do with monetary matters. Martinez, who turns 36 in December, is due to be paid $7.5 million for 2004. A club option for 2005 calls for $8 million in salary or a $1 million buyout. The Cardinals have agreed to absorb some $6 million of Martinez's salary for next season, while Tampa will be responsible for the remaining $1.5 million and the option-buyout for 2005.
Martinez played two seasons in St. Louis, following Mark McGwire as the club's regular first baseman. An important cog in five World Series teams with the New York Yankees, the lefthanded-swinging Martinez seemed a good fit with his unassuming demeanor and reputation as a leader.
But Martinez never matched the production he enjoyed in the AL. Averaging 29 home runs and 115 runs batted in over the previous six seasons in New York, he batted .262 with 21 home runs and 75 runs batted in for the Cardinals in 2002. Last season, he batted .273 with 15 homers and 69 RBIs. Martinez batted .210 with runners in scoring position, one of several Cardinals to underachieve in that category, and had just five homers and 26 RBIs after the All-Star break.
Frustrated by the decline, Martinez never seemed quite comfortable as a Cardinal. In Tampa Bay, he will return to the league where he was a more prominent player. Martinez was clearly more effective against AL pitching last season, batting .315 with two homers and 15 RBIs in 54 at-bats against the AL teams on the Cardinals' schedule. He batted .297 during interleague play in 2002.
A move to Tampa also would reunite Martinez with Lou Piniella, who was his manager in Seattle from 1993 to 1995.
Dan O'Neill, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 11/19/03
Tomorrow Maybe?
