| Tino Martinez | |
|---|---|
 Martinez in 2015 | |
| First baseman | |
| Born: (1967-12-07)December 7, 1967 (age 57) Tampa, Florida, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| August 20, 1990, for the Seattle Mariners | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| October 1, 2005, for the New York Yankees | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .271 |
| Home runs | 339 |
| Runs batted in | 1,271 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
As player
As coach | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Constantino "Tino"Martinez (born December 7, 1967) is an American former professionalbaseball player. He played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for theSeattle Mariners,New York Yankees,St. Louis Cardinals, andTampa Bay Devil Rays from 1990 through 2005. He also served as ahitting coach for theMiami Marlins in 2013. He was also nicknamed "The Bam-tino" after his home run in Game 1 of the1998 World Series.[1] Formerly athird baseman, Martinez was the first round draft pick for the Seattle Mariners in1988 out of theUniversity of Tampa, where he starred during his time on campus. During his 16-year MLB career, he scored 1,009runs,drove in 1,271 runs, and hit 339home runs. He had 100 or moreRBI in six different seasons and was twice named to theAll-Star team.
Tino Martinez was born and raised in the neighborhood ofWest Tampa inTampa, Florida, to aCuban-American father with Spanish roots and a mother with Italian and Greek ancestry. His grandfather owned a small cigar factory, in which Martinez and his brothers, as well as childhood friend and fellow future major-leaguerLuis Gonzalez, worked as young boys.[2] Martinez attended St. Joseph School inWest Tampa until 8th grade, then attendedTampa Catholic High School for 9th and 10th grades, before transferring to and graduating fromJefferson High School. Martinez led both of his high schools to state baseball championships.[3] With Tampa Catholic, he had future Major LeaguersLance McCullers andRich Monteleone as teammates.[4]
Martinez enrolled at theUniversity of Tampa, where he playedcollege baseball for theTampa Spartans inNCAA Division II. He played three years for Tampa, and was an All-American each year. In 1986, he playedcollegiate summer baseball with theFalmouth Commodores of theCape Cod Baseball League and was named a league all-star.[5][6] As of 2011, Martinez still held school records in careerhome runs (54), careerbatting average (.399), careerslugging percentage (.736), single season batting average (.452) and single season slugging percentage (.957).[3] In 1988, he was a finalist for theGolden Spikes Award, which has never been given to any NCAA Division II player. One year after graduating he was inducted into the University of Tampa's athletics hall of fame.[7] Since 2010, the Tino Martinez Award has been given to the most outstanding NCAA Division II baseball player.[8] In 2013, Martinez was inducted into theNational College Baseball Hall of Fame.[9]
The Seattle Mariners drafted Martinez in1988. Martinez's first Major League manager wasLou Piniella, who had also grown up in the West Tampa neighborhood, and who knew Martinez's uncle and mother. Martinez had several mediocre seasons, but broke out in1995 when he drove in 111 runs, hit 31 home runs and batted .293. The Mariners clinched the AL West and went on to play in the first season ofdivisional postseason play against the New York Yankees.
Following that season, theNew York Yankees acquired Martinez, along withJeff Nelson andJim Mecir, forSterling Hitchcock andRuss Davis. Before the trade was finalized, Martinez and the Yankees agreed to a five-year, $20.25 million contract extension. Martinez succeededDon Mattingly as the Yankees' starting first baseman.[10]
Martinez was with the New York Yankees as they won fourWorld Series championships in five seasons:1996,1998,1999, and2000. He also won theHome Run Derby in 1997.[11] Martinez hit two memorable home runs as a Yankee in theWorld Series. The first came offMark Langston in Game 1 of the1998 Series. The Yankees had tied the game earlier in the inning with aChuck Knoblauch three-run home run. The following three batters got on base, and Martinez came to the plate. After taking a very close pitch with a 2–2 count, which appeared to be strike three but was not ruled as such by umpireRichie Garcia, Martinez hit the next pitch into the upper deck for a grand slam, giving the Yankees a four-run lead. Martinez's second memorable World Series home run came three years later, on October 31, 2001. The Yankees were down to their last out trailing by two runs, two outs in the 9th inning, when Martinez came to the plate with a runner on. He hit a game-tying home run to right center offArizona Diamondbacks closerByung-hyun Kim, and the Yankees went on to win the game. The feat was repeated the following night byScott Brosius. However, the Yankees would lose Games 6 and 7 and thus the Series.
His best season statistically came in1997, when he was second in theAmerican League in home runs and RBI (with 44 and 141 respectively), and finished second inAL Most Valuable Player voting. On May 19, 1998, he was hit by a pitch in the upper back byBaltimore Orioles pitcherArmando Benítez, which resulted in an intense brawl between the two teams.
In the2001 World Series, Martinez's Yankees faced off against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The series went to Game 7, which Arizona won whenLuis Gonzalez, Martinez's best friend, hit a game-winning single off Yankee closerMariano Rivera in the bottom of the 9th inning. Gonzalez later recalled that when he went back home to check his answering machine, the first message of congratulations was from Martinez.[12]
During most of his time with the Yankees, Martinez resided inTenafly, New Jersey.[13]
After the2001 season the Yankees elected to signJason Giambi for2002 and beyond. Martinez went on to play for theSt. Louis Cardinals for two seasons, once again replacing an aging, legendary first baseman,Mark McGwire.
When Martinez returned to Yankee Stadium during a series in 2003, he received a standing ovation by Yankee fans. In the second game of the three game series, Martinez hit two home runs off former teammateAndy Pettitte, receiving a substantial ovation from the crowd both times. The Yankee fans cheered him for acurtain call, a rare occurrence in honor of a visiting team's player.[citation needed]
After the2003 season, the Cardinals decided to haveAlbert Pujols switch from left field to first base. They traded Martinez to theTampa Bay Devil Rays, where he was reunited with his manager in Seattle, Lou Piniella, who was now managing the Devil Rays. Martinez hit 23 home runs, while serving as a mentor for the team's many young players, and was popular with Devil Rays' fans. His family lived just minutes fromTropicana Field.
Prior to the2004 Summer Olympics, the host nation, Greece, trying to build up their chances of winning a medal, decided to put together a team of North American baseball players of Greek heritage. Martinez, having some Greek ancestry, was approached by the Greek Olympic team manager,Rob Derksen, and asked to play for the host nation. Martinez, along with fellow MLB playersEric Karros andAaron Miles, declined the offer because the games were in the midst of the Major League Baseball season.[14]
Martinez returned for a second tour of duty with the Yankees for the 2005 season. From May 7–11, 2005, Martinez hit five home runs in five straight games, which is one more than his previous best, set from June 27 – July 31, 2001. Held homer-less on May 12, 2005, Martinez hit two homers on May 15 to give him eight home runs in eight games.[citation needed]
On November 8, 2005, the Yankees declined their $3 million option on Martinez, making him a free agent.
On Wednesday February 15, 2006, he officially decided to end his playing career. Martinez confirmed the decision in theSt. Petersburg Times, telling the paper that he would begin his broadcasting career atESPN. Martinez said that the offer from ESPN made his decision to retire a lot easier, as he would work onBaseball Tonight, do some radio work, and broadcast a few games.[citation needed]
In his 16-year Major League career, Martinez hit.271 with 339 home runs and 1,271RBI. During his seven years with the Yankees, he hit 192home runs and drove in 739 runs.[citation needed]
Martinez, along with other futureMajor LeaguersJim Abbott andRobin Ventura, won a gold medal at the1988 Summer Olympics inSeoul,South Korea, the seventh time that baseball was part of theOlympic Games and its last year as ademonstration sport. In the final game, Martinez belted two homers and drove in four runs, and Abbott pitched acomplete game, as they led the USA to a 5–3 win.
In2008, Martinez agreed to be a special instructor for the Yankees to help their first basemen with defensive skills.[15]After Spring training, he was named Special Assistant to the General Manager.[16]
Starting in Spring training 2010, Martinez became a color commentator for theYES Network, replacing the departedDavid Cone.[17] He made his regular season debut on April 9, 2010, when he called a game between the Yankees and the Rays that was coincidentally played back in his home area ofTampa Bay.
Martinez was named the hitting coach for theMiami Marlins for the 2013 season, replacingEduardo Pérez.[18] On July 28, 2013, Martinez resigned from the position amid allegations of physically abusingDerek Dietrich several months before the resignation. Martinez's behavior in the clubhouse was reported to include verbal attacks towards the Marlins'Justin Ruggiano andChris Valaika, along with minor league playerMatt Downs.[19]
In 2023, Martinez returned to the Cape Cod Baseball League as assistant coach of theHyannis Harbor Hawks.[20][21]
Martinez has been married to Marie Prado since 1991. They have three children: Olivia, Tino, Jr. (TJ), and Victoria. The family currently resides in West Tampa.
The premiere ofYankeeography: Tino Martinez appeared in early May 2006, on theYES Network. On April 2, 2007, Martinez received the 2007 Pride of The Yankees Award at the New York Yankees Homecoming Banquet.[22]
In 2008, during the final season of the old Yankee Stadium, Martinez participated in his first Old Timers' Day.In a Yankees vs. Orioles preseason game on March 14, 2010, it was mentioned by Yankees play-by-play announcer,Michael Kay, that Martinez is a fan of theTampa Bay Buccaneers.[citation needed]
Martinez also participates annually in the Derek Jeter Celebrity Invitational (DJCI) golf tournament in Tampa.[23]
Martinez, who left theUniversity of Tampa after his junior year to pursue professional baseball, received a bachelor's degree at UT in liberal studies on May 7, 2011.[24]
Martinez participated in the Yankees' 2011Old Timers' Day on June 26, 2011.[25] He has returned several more times. The Yankees honored Martinez with a plaque inMonument Park on June 21, 2014.[26] Martinez was also present at a ceremony when former teammateDerek Jeter had his number 2 retired on May 14, 2017.
Since October 2019, Martinez has worked in commercial real estate in the Tampa area.[27]
Tino Martinez lived in Tenafly, N.J., during his first five seasons with the Yankees, but he sold his house after last season and decided to live in Manhattan this season.
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