J.D. Martínez finds closure in Game 5 home run

HOUSTON – As his Red Sox teammates sprayed each other with champagne all around him in the visiting clubhouse at Minute Maid Park early Friday morning, slugger J.D. Martínez could finally admit that it was extra special to meet and beat the Astros in the American League Championship Series.

Martínez had been perhaps the most famous victim of the Astros’ success. At least that’s how the franchise that developed him described the situation when they released him for nothing in March 2014.

On a cool evening before a raucous orange-clad crowd at Minute Maid Park on Thursday night, however, the Astros finally truly became the victims of Martínez’s success.

Long ball redemption

Martínez was one of three former Astros employees who conspired to eliminate the defending champions in the ALCS. His solo home run in the third inning against ace Justin Verlander opened the scoring in the decisive Game 5.

“Everybody wants to talk about that,” Martínez said of his release from the Astros. “But obviously it’s a little sweeter now being able to celebrate here. It’s one of those things, it’s the past.”

The Cuban-American from Miami has been one of the most feared power hitters in baseball since the Astros gave up on him. The Detroit Tigers gave him a second chance two days after he was released, and the rest is one of the most heartwarming comeback stories in baseball.

Martínez, 31, earned his first All-Star berth in 2015. After hitting .251 with only 24 home runs and 126 RBI in 252 games over three years with the Astros, he hit 23 homers and 76 RBI in 2014 with the Tigers.

He compiled a .300/.351/.551/.912 slash line with 99 home runs, 285 RBIs and one All-Star berth over three-and-a-half-seasons with the Tigers before the Red Sox gave him a five-year, $110 million contract this past winter.

Boston’s (former) Astros

In Boston, Martínez joined rookie manager Álex Cora, who had served as the Astros’ bench coach in 2017 as Houston claimed its first World Series title last year.

Cora, the first Puerto Rican to manage a team to the World Series, brought over Mexican-American Craig Bjornson from the Astros’ coaching staff to serve as his bullpen coach.

Bjornson was with the Astros’ organization from 2012 through 2017, serving as bullpen coach in 2012 and then again from 2014 through 2017. He knew what his organization liked to do and had an extensive knowledge of the Astros’ relievers.

“CB is a big part of what they did offensively because he knew how they approach guys, and it was amazing,” Cora said of Bjornson, a Tucson, Ariz., native.

Cora and Bjornson played pivotal roles in helping the Red Sox win the best-of-seven ALCS 4-1, sweeping all three games at Minute Maid Park to win the last four in a row after dropping Game 1 at Fenway Park.

ALCS Homecoming

Martínez’s return to Houston, however, was one of the biggest storylines of the ALCS even though all parties tried to play it down.

“Like J.D. said, that was a decision that didn’t work out for the Astros, but it sure did work out for him,” Astros president of baseball operations Jeff Luhnow, who released Martínez, said before Game 2 of the ALCS. “I’m very happy for him as long as he doesn’t take it out on us here in the next week.”

Unfortunately for the Astros, Martínez definitely took it out on them in the ALCS.

Martínez was held without a hit in the first two games of the ALCS. He got his first hit and RBI in Game 3 when the series resumed at Minute Maid Park. He added two hits and an RBI in Game 4. He then secured his first extra-base hit of the ALCS with a blast off his former Tigers teammate Verlander to give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead.

The trip around the bases was extra sweet for Martínez, considering the stakes and the opponent.

“What’s going through my mind? ‘Let’s go,’” he said. “You’re pumped up. It’s one of those things where you know we got one. Now we have to get going. Obviously one run in this game, you’ve seen the last couple of games, it doesn’t mean much.

“Obviously just to kind of take a little pressure off the guys was great, but the big hit came from Rafie.”

Rafie, by the way, is young Dominican third baseman Rafael Devers, who drilled a three-run home run off Verlander in the sixth.

The Astros never recovered after Devers’ blow. Eventually, Martínez was celebrating an American League pennant with his teammates near the Minute Maid Park mound as some of his former teammates looked on.

Martínez downplayed the homecoming most of the series. He has remained humble and said all the right things, remaining classy while admitting a sense of sweet revenge.

Now he’s heading to the World Series at the expense of his old team.

“I wouldn’t be here,” Martínez said, “if I didn’t go through the struggles and I didn’t go through the things that I went through here.”

Featured Image: Tim Warner / Getty Images Sport