Quebecer Russell Martin was welcomed with class by the Toronto Blue Jays organization on Friday to make the ceremonial shot before the game against the Tampa Bay Rays.
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If the invitation was sent to him as part of Canada Day, Martin was also accompanied on the field of the Rogers Center by some young Quebec players selected by Baseball Quebec, not to mention his family, including his children Emmy and Eva. A video, with his former teammate Jose Bautista narrating, had also been prepared.
“I may be biased, but my favorite was here in Toronto. The more important the situation was and the greater the stakes, Russ became better,” Bautista then described, before a sequence leaving Quebecers Jacques Doucet and Rodger Brulotte to describe a circuit.
Martin, 39, officially announced his retirement from baseball last May. During his 14-season career, he notably wore the colors of the Jays between 2015 and 2018. The receiver also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Yankees and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Naturally, Martin received a warm welcome from Toronto fans as well as testimonials from former teammates. In his first campaign with the Blue Jays, in 2015, the Quebecer had scored a personal best of 23 home runs in one season. In four years with the club, he has hit 66 long balls, batting .225 and hitting .336. Martin had mostly made the playoffs twice with the Jays, reaching the American League Championship Series on each occasion.
The one who used to catch ceremonial throws was able to throw one this time, at the place of the young receiver Gabriel Moreno, who also wears Martin’s former number 55.
“I told him that there were still several hits left in this jersey,” said Martin, whose comments were echoed by the Toronto Sun.
And let fans take it for granted, Martin is no longer the athlete he was. The former receiver could not put on the uniform for any competition, whether for the Jays or to represent Canada, he who now focuses on his golf scorecard and his family.
“I’m really out of shape. As much as I would like to tell myself that I would be able to, I would be far from being able to play, admitted Martin. And I have too much respect for all the guys who spend several hours training during the off-season. They are well-tuned race cars and I am a decrepit old truck.
Soon at Stade Canac
After the Blue Jays, the Capitales de Québec organization has also announced its intention to honor Russell Martin on Friday, July 8, at Stade Canac.
The Quebecer, whose career in professional baseball will be underlined, will this time make the ceremonial pitch before the game against the New York Boulders.
