J.D. MARTINEZ
The Mets’ late spring free-agent addition J.D. Martinez takes a swing at some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.
Q: What is the biggest adversity or obstacle you had to overcome?
A: I think it’s when I hurt my foot in 2017.
Q: You thought your career was over in 2017?
A: Yes . ... I tore my Lisfranc. I missed seven weeks of the season. ... It was very depressing. It was very scary. It was my free agency year.
Q: How did you get through it?
A: Praying. Being with my family and my friends. There were days I was like, “This is not getting better.” There were weeks at a time when it just did not get better. I spent literally two weeks, and it hasn’t moved forward and it just still feels like s--t. That’s what the doctor was telling me, he’s like, “It’s not gonna get better, it’s one of those things where it can and it cannot.” It was very scary and a very tough time for me.
Q: What were you thinking you might do?
A: I really wasn’t thinking about that. I was thinking about my Lisfranc and getting heathy.
Q: Was that a worst moment emotionally than being released by the Astros in March 2014?
A: Obviously when I got released, that was a huge obstacle ... [but] no. ’Cause I knew what I had done and I knew the change I had made. It was funny ’cause [Mets GM] David Stearns was in the office when I got released — he was [then-Astros GM] Jeff Luhnow’s assistant. The one thing he always said when I talked to him about it, he goes, “Yeah, I just remember how confident you were when you left that room.” And I was like, “That’s when I felt the most confident.”
Q: Why was that?
A: ’Cause I had made my swing change, so I already knew what I got.
Q: The criticism that bothered you the most or you felt was unfair?
A: I think it was that COVID year. The northeast media, man, they’re tough, and they’re just relentless, and they just expect such a high performance every day. I remember coming off ’18 and ’19 and literally being at the top of the list for every category offensively, and then ’20 comes in, the damn doctor’s telling me that I’m not allowed to hit BP, I’m not allowed to freakin’ lift weights, I’m not allowed to do anything because I’m scared I’m gonna die of COVID ’cause I have bad asthma. So I go out there, they take my video away from me, I don’t have anything to look at. I spent the last two months sitting at home not being able to do anything, just doing little in-home workouts. And had a bad year in a year that nobody even thought we were gonna play baseball, and the media in Boston just absolutely destroyed me, told me they need to trade me, that I’m terrible, I’m washed up, and this and that, and it was just nonstop. That was probably the most unfair thing that happened.
Q: Signing with the Mets in the New York market didn’t give you any pause?
A: I can handle it, they’re already saying I’m old anyways, you know? It plays for me. If I suck, “Oh I’m old.” If I do good, it’s “Oh, but he’s old.” So I don’t even sweat it.
Q: How did the nickname “Just Dingers” begin?
A: I don’t know, someone in Arizona started that (laugh). Q: I also think the following apply for J.D.: Just Driven ... Just Determined . .. Just Defiant. A: I like those, those are nice. Q: Which one applies most? A: I think they’re all pretty good. Q: Who had the prettiest swings you’ve ever seen? A: Righties or lefties? Q: Whatever you like. A: I mean, everyone’s gonna go to [Ken] Griffey [Jr.], obviously. Everyone’s gonna go to these guys, I think they’re swagger swings, great-looking swings. To me, I’ve always liked Miguel Cabrera’s ... Manny Ramirez. I think those two had like the best swings. I used to study righties. It’s weird, righties can’t do what lefties do, it’s just weird.
Q: How pretty now is your swing?
A: Right now at this moment? It ain’t very pretty, I’ll tell you that (laugh). It gets pretty, but it’s one of those things where just a lot of grinding and I gotta line up a lot of things and then it’ll get pretty. Obviously I’m gonna be harder on my swing than anyone else’s.
Q: It’s a curse being a perfectionist, isn’t it?
A: It is.
Q: Describe your mentality in the batter’s box.
A: What’s the word I’m looking for here? When you’re just locked in on your goal and what you’re trying to do. Some word for that.
Q: Laser focused?
A: Yeah, I would say focused.
Q: Describe your baseball mentality in general.
A: I’m just trying to get the job done, you know? Trying to find a way to survive that day and get it done and thrive ... hungry.
Q: From your Instagram: “When backed into a corner, one has two options: he can lie down and die, or he can fight regardless of the odds.”
A: I think we [Diamondbacks] were trailing in the [2017 NLDS against the Dodgers] 2-0 and were about to get swept.
Q: It can actually apply to your baseball life and story.
A: Yeah, it’s what my dad always taught me. Any obstacles that you come across, you can just fold it, or you go against it and you figure out a way to overcome it.
Q: Describe Carlos Mendoza.
A: Nice, understanding, openminded I would say.
Q: How do you feel about DH now compared to when you were younger?
A: Obviously I didn’t want to do it when I was younger. And now it’s just one of those things where they put you in a corner where you’re DH now, you know?
Q: Is it easy for you to adapt to now?
A: I’ve been doing it for how long now ... since 2018? So I feel like I’ve adapted well.
Q: Even now though you would still love to get out in the outfield?
A: Oh, I love playing the field. It’s fun.
Q: What do you remember about Kodai Senga last year?
A: Nasty forkball.
Q: What are your thoughts on the Mets’ lineup?
A: Talented lineup. It’s just one of those things they just gotta continue to grow. Got a lot of young guys, and they just have to grow.
Q: Favorite movie?
A: “The Count of Monte Cristo.”
Q: Favorite actors?
A: Denzel [Washington]; Leonardo DiCaprio.
Q: Favorite actress?
A: Margot Robbie. Q: Favorite singer/entertainer? A: Drake. Q: Favorite meal? A: Piccadillo.
Q: How much longer do you want to do this?
A: I don’t know. It could be this year, it could be next year. It’s just one of those things where I just want to see what happens. It’s gotta be worth it for me to come back.