After being acquired on July 31, Martinez has played in Baltimore, Tampa Bay and New York. Monday night, he'll finally make his debut in Boston.
The 30-year-old, who has played 17 games at Fenway Park for the Indians, is excited for the opportunity.
“I’m really looking forward to get back to Boston and play on the home side,” Martinez told The Boston Herald's Steve Buckley. “It’s always been pretty tough to play against those fans, so this will be different for me, and better. It will be great. They’re going to be on my side.”
Martinez acknowledged that the passion of the fans in Fenway has always stood out to him, even when he was a visitor. He recalled an experience in October of 2007, after he and the Indians were eliminated by the Red Sox in Game 7 of the ALCS.
On the Indians' way out of Fenway, they ran into a group of Red Sox fans.
"We walk out of the clubhouse, the Boston fans noticed us and they all started to cheer," Martinez told the Herald. “And there were a lot of them there. They’re saying, ‘Great series, guys,’ and things like that. I remember one man saying to me, ‘Come back next year and we’ll play you again.’ I never thought it was going to be like that. That was great. And it’s something I’ll keep as a special memory.”
Martinez is now ready to create a whole new set of memories at Fenway, where he is a career .313 hitter with four home runs in 67 at-bats.
His two-run homer in the top of the eighth on Sunday night — which was then set to be the game-winner — was buried quickly by Daniel Bard's blown save in the bottom of the frame. With the Red Sox desparate for a win at home, Martinez will be facing Edwin Jackson, against whom he is just a .214 hitter.
Still, given the late-inning flair he showed Sunday night, the prospect of seeing Martinez collect clutch hits at Fenway is an exciting concept, both for Martinez and the fans.
