Monday, January 17, 2011

Russell Martin says 'personal' issues cause of decline

Former Dodger catcher Russell Martin told the National Post of Canada that "personal issues" were the cause of his decline in the last few seasons.
"There's some things that you keep for yourself," Martin said. "Those distractions, they're personal -- personal issues in my life that not everybody needs to know about."
This is a quote from the story. I respect Martin's right to privacy and I'm not trying to pry or even figure out said personal issues. As he said, not everyone needs to know about those issues. However, unless it was something tragic or serious, can we really expect it to be the sole blame for his decline?

I have said my piece on Martin's decline. While Martin is probably to classy to say it, his overuse as a Dodger probably led to his decline as well.

I have a soft spot in my heart for catchers. I really had envisioned Martin being the leader of this organization and having his No. 55 hanging in between Jackie Robinson and Don Drysdale. Obviously those visions were premature.

He's probably not going to reach that status, but he could get back to respectability -- and I hope he does.

The Dodgers will have to see if the combination of Rod Barajas and Dioner Navarro can at least match Martin's production in recent years. Sadly, I don't think the combo will.

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Danny Knobler of CBS Sports said the Dodgers are interested in Marcus Thames to fill the need for a right-handed-hitting outfielder.

This needs to happen. Thames' defense, while atrocious, couldn't really be that much worse part-time than Manny Ramirez was full-time in left field. Plus, he could play 1B in a pinch. His power is intriguing and should be intriguing enough to overlook his severe defensive deficiencies.

Knobler also notes the Dodgers have "moved on" from Scott Podsednik. Thank God!

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