Veteran catcher Russell Martin intends to return for what would be his 15th MLB season in 2020, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network.
There had been some speculation that Martin could retire, but apparently, he wants to make another run at a World Series championship, something that has eluded him for the decade-and-a-half he has been in the bigs.
Martin spent the 2019 campaign with the Los Angeles Dodgers, which marked his second stint with the club. In 83 games, he slashed .220/.337/.330 with six home runs and 20 RBI over 249 plate appearances.
The 36-year-old began his major-league career with the Dodgers back in 2006 and spent the first five seasons of his tenure in Los Angeles, making a couple of All-Star teams in 2007 and 2008.
His career got off to a terrific start, as he slashed .282/.355/.436 with 10 long balls and 65 RBI during his rookie campaign, and the following year, Martin was even better, slashing .293/.374/.469 with 19 dingers, 32 doubles and 87 RBI across 620 trips to the dish.
After another impressive year in 2008 in which he registered a slash line of .280/.385/.396 with 13 homers and 69 RBI, Martin's offensive production began to tail off, as he posted OPSes of .681 and .679, respectively, during his final two seasons of his first stint in LA.
Martin proceeded to join the New York Yankees for two years and had a bit of a comeback in terms of power numbers, as he bashed 18 and 21 home runs, respectively, in 2011 and 2012.
The backstop then linked up with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2013, and in 2014, he had his best season since his 2008 All-Star campaign, slashing .290/.402/.430 with 11 long balls and 67 RBI in 111 games with the Pirates.
Martin would go on to spend his next four seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays, logging mostly unimpressive numbers before returning to the Dodgers last year.
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