Leonys Martin said this recently in an interview, “I’m gonna be 25 years old in March. In Triple-A last year, I hit 12 homers, stole 10 bases and hit for a .359 average in 231 at-bats while rocking a .422 OBP. My mother, Martina, always said, ‘Leonys, modesty isn’t the best policy, it’s the only policy, except for my policy regarding our dining room which is no shoes, no shirt, no service.’ But if I, Leonys Martin the Great, may be so bold, I’m a solid center fielder and ready for the majors. I have nothing left to prove in the minors. I could get double digit homers and steals in 2013 in the minors, too, but instead I’d like to play for my major league club, the Rangers. I hear Josh Hamilton will be shopping around his talents this offseason. I say, let him go! No disrespect to Josh Hamilton and all he’s done for the Rangers organization. In most organizations, a manager doing coke would be huge news, but Josh made that seem as inconsequential as being unable to say no to a second dessert. If Hamilton returns, maybe you guys go back to benching David Murphy. I’m open to suggestions for playing time. I don’t want to have to count on Nelson Cruz hurting himself. Sure, it’s bound to happen, but I want a full-time job out of camp. Anyway, thanks for listening and not calling me Martin Leonys, even if that would make more sense.” And that’s me quoting Leonys! So what can we expect of Leonys Martin for 2013 fantasy baseball?
As Leonys so modestly pointed out, he is ready and just needs an everyday job. For this, let’s assume Hamilton goes somewhere else and Martin gets 500 ABs next year. Like quintuplets conjoined at the waist, Martin is five-toolsy. He won’t steal 40 bases. He won’t hit 20 homers. He may not hit .300 (though there’s a better chance of that happening than the other two). He can do a little bit of everything with his main complement for fantasy teams being his speed. He looks a lot like so many other Victorino knockoffs that have come before. Martin could be Dexter Fowler, Alejandro De Aza or Austin Jackson. Since his caught stealing rate is hideous, he might only steal 12 to 15 bases like Jackson or Fowler. If he can figure out how to use his speed, he could be a lot closer to De Aza. In Arlington, he should top 10 homers. I’ll give him the line of 85/12/50/.280/17. Like the Riddler’s leotards, there’s a lot of question marks with those stats. Will he bat 9th or 1st? Will Hamilton be around? Will Martin figure out how to steal with his speed? He could easily have 15 homers and 30 steals or he could have 3 homers, 5 steals, .220 average and only 125 ABs. For further reading, see Julio Borbon’s career.
