Emerald City Swagger
Fansided

Player Profile: Leonys Martin

By Ben Renner

Feb 27, 2016; Peoria, AZ, USA; Seattle Mariners center fielder Leonys Martin (12) poses for a photo during media day at Peoria Sports Complex . Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 27, 2016; Peoria, AZ, USA; Seattle Mariners center fielder Leonys Martin (12) poses for a photo during media day at Peoria Sports Complex . Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Leonys Martin wasn’t brought aboard by Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto because of his bat, but he should contribute in other ways.

Leonys Martin came to the Mariners in one of the many trades that Jerry Dipoto executed in the offseason to shore up an outfield defense that underachieved in 2015. Martin was good with the glove as usual in 2015. He made one single error in center field for the Texas Rangers and threw out 13 baserunners.

More from Seattle Mariners

Are you ready for some more fielding stats? Leonys Martin was 15 runs saved above average in 2015, according the Baseball Reference, and while his Range Factor per game was right around league average, his Range Factor per Inning was well above the league average at 3.06 (league average was 2.68). You don’t need advanced fielding statistics to tell you that Martin is a good fielder. He passes the eye test in center and he’ll have even more room to run down fly balls in the spacious Safeco Field confines.

It used to be that you could count on at least 30 steals per season  from the speedy outfielder, but in 2015 his speed production dropped to only 14 steals on 19 attempts in 95 games. Injuries took their toll on Leonys Martin, and with few other base stealers in the Mariners lineup, it’s likely manager Scott Servais will turn him loose in 2016 from the bottom of the lineup.

Leonys Martin’s career slugging percentage is .361, but, aside from last season, he at least got enough hits to not completely drain the lineup. In 2014, Martin hit a respectable .274 with a mediocre yet acceptable OBP of .325. Those numbers are much better than the putrid .219/.264/.313 he put up last year. He’s a singles hitter who likes to slap the ball and run to first.

Leonys Martin
Leonys Martin, pictured here next to Yu Darvish, had a disappointing year for Texas in 2015. He’ll bounce back in 2016 for Seattle. Mandatory Credit: Jim Cowsert-USA TODAY Sports /

I’m not expecting a huge offensive year from a guy who has 20 career home runs, but it’s reasonable to expect a rebound from his injury-marred 2015 at the plate. He’s never been a big on-base type of guy, either, but I’ll take the over on his 14 steals in 2015 for 2016.

Where we’ll see the positive effects of Leonys Martin is in the ERAs of Mariners pitchers. His ability to get to fly balls in the wide expanse of outfield grass in Safeco will protect pitchers and if the league isn’t aware of his cannon of an arm by now, they will surely not test him on too many first-to-thirds as the 2016 season progresses.

Next: Player Profile: Chris Iannetta

Leonys Martin can change games with his glove and his arm. As long as he stays healthy, he’ll be a useful contributor for the Mariners in 2016. Let me know what you think in the comment section.

Home/Seattle Mariners