Dodgers NL West Rival Emerging as Landing Spot For JD Martinez

Will Martinez regress in his age-37 season?

Six-time All-Star, three-time Silver Slugger and one-time Hank Aaron award winner J.D. Martinez put together a great season for the Dodgers in 2023. 

Despite missing 49 games, Martinez hit 33 home runs and drove in 103 RBIs, with this past season being highlighted by him hitting his 300th career home run along with driving in his 1,000th career run in late September. 

Martinez played at a high level and would have deserved another contract from the Dodgers, but their potential decision to bring him back was mutually exclusive with the signing of Shohei Ohtani. 

As a result, a few teams around the league have begun pursuing him, with an emphasis being placed on NL West division rival San Francisco Giants, and the Toronto Blue Jays.

.@jonmorosi mentions the Giants and Blue Jays as potential landing spots for free agent J.D. Martinez, after hitting 33 HR and driving in 103 runs last season. pic.twitter.com/Mv35rzKe7f

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) January 8, 2024

Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has expressed interest in the team improving offensively, which Martinez would assist with greatly. 

Per Marc Delucchi of SI.com, advanced analytics back Martinez up, as his batted-ball data was in the 90th percentile or better in stats like hard-hit rate, xSLG, and xwOBA. 

The Giants ranked in the bottom half of the league in home runs per game (1.07), leaving Martinez to be a potential key driver in an offense that needs major improvement. 

No favorites have emerged for the 36-year-old slugger, but expect his market to heat up in the coming weeks.