The Los Angeles Dodgers have seen three-time Silver Slugger award winner J.D. Martinez in both their dugout and the opposition’s in playoff games over the past seven years. That could still happen again in 2025.
MLB insider Jon Heyman reported on January 30 that Martinez wants to be back in the big leagues this season.
“J.D. Martinez, a big influence in the Mets’ winning clubhouse, is aiming to play in 2025,” wrote Heyman.
Martinez made the National League All-Star team in his only season with the Dodgers in 2023. That season, he slashed .271/.321/.572 with 33 home runs.
Last year, the Dodgers met Martinez in the NLCS while he was playing with the New York Mets.
Heyman didn’t indicate whether Martinez wanted to return to the Mets or pursue other options.
J.D. Martinez Aiming to Return in 2025
As Heyman indicated, the veteran designated hitter was a valuable piece to the Mets clubhouse last season. While New York went through its ups and downs during 2024, the Mets ultimately fell just two wins short of a World Series appearance.
But it’s not clear the Mets want him back. Martinez will turn 38 in August. At the end of last season, he lost his job after a subpar August and September.
In 55 at-bats during the final month of the regular season, he had just six hits, including only two extra-base hits and zero home runs.
The veteran, who only serves as a designated hitter at this point in his career, finished the 2024 campaign with a .235 average, 16 home runs, 69 RBI and 46 runs scored.
Could the Dodgers Bring Back Martinez?
The last time the veteran designated hitter made the All-Star team was with the Dodgers. Considering that fact, it’s an interesting question whether the two parties would consider a reunion.
But because of his lack of defensive flexibility, that’s highly unlikely to happen. The Dodgers already have the best designated hitter on the planet in Shohei Ohtani.
“The Dodgers likely would have brought Martinez back if Shohei Ohtani hadn’t signed, but the designated hitter found a home with the Mets during their amazing 2024 campaign,” wrote SI on Dodgers’ Valentina Martinez.
In addition to 33 home runs, Martinez posted 103 RBI and 61 runs with the Dodgers during 2023. His 103 RBI were his most in a season since 2019.
The 2024 NLCS wasn’t the first time the Dodgers faced Martinez in the playoffs. He was an All-Star with the Boston Red Sox in 2018 when the two teams met in the World Series.
Martinez led the American League with 130 RBI in 2018. He won the only World Series ring of his career at the end of that season.
In 41 career playoff games, Martinez has hit .285 with a .930 OPS. He only posted a .200 average but had a .500 slugging percentage in limited opportunities for the Dodgers during the 2023 postseason.
Last year, he slashed .222/.417/.222 during the playoffs with the Mets.
In 23 postseason games with the Red Sox, Martinez hit .317 with a 1.005 OPS.
The best fit for Martinez in 2025 is with a team where he can serve as a designated hitter. He might be best suited for a platoon role where he faces mostly left-handed pitching.
Martinez had an OPS 153 points higher versus lefties than right-handed pitching during 2025.
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