Russell Martin’s Hamstring A Concern For Pittsburgh Pirates’ Postseason Hopes

By Nate Vandergrift on September 30, 2014

Russell Martin is the heart and soul of the Pittsburgh Pirates. He is the emotional leader and the unofficial captain of the team, but more importantly he is the guy you want at the plate when the game is on the line. And don’t forget that Martin is one of the best behind the plate at calling a game and throwing out base-runners. He has gunned down 37 of 96 base-runners, a solid 39 percent caught stealing rate. Martin’s hamstring injury, which sidelined him earlier this year, has flared back up. If this injury forces Martin to miss any of the postseason games, it could cause an early exit for the Pirates.

The Pirates rested Martin the final two games of the season, after the catcher seemed to aggravate his hamstring injury in the 7th inning of the game against the Cincinnati Reds on Friday. Martin was also out of the lineup for Thursday’s game against the Atlanta Braves. This came after his hamstring acted up in Wednesday night’s game. Martin has been catching all year with several injuries, including problems with his left shoulder and the lingering hamstring. The good news is Martin tends to play through the pain and he does it well. This year, despite the lingering issues and a trip to the disabled list,  Martin has appeared in 111 games. He’s hit .290 with 11 home runs and 67 RBIs.

To make matters worse behind the plate for the Pirates, backup catcher Chris Stewart was injured in the final game of the regular season. Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto‘s wild bat throw on his go-ahead single in the 8th inning hit Stewart in the wrist of his catching hand. Stewart went down in a heap and had to leave the game. The x-rays on Stewart’s wrist were negative, but he reported that the wrist felt stiff and sore the day after it was hit. Stewart’s availability for Wednesday’s Wild Card game against the Giants is in doubt.  Stewart has hit .294 in 49 games for the Pirates, but he provides little to no power. He also has struggled on defense, throwing out just 9-of-39 base-runners, a caught stealing rate of 23 percent.

Enter Tony Sanchez. The once highly-touted catching prospect for the Pirates may be called into duty for the postseason. Sanchez continues to struggle behind the plate, simply unable to throw out base-runners. This season with the Pirates, Sanchez has only thrown out 3-of-21 base-runners, a measly 14 percent.  In AAA Indianapolis, Sanchez threw out just 8-of-63 base-runners for a whopping 13 percent caught stealing rate. He struggled so much that the Pirates even started training Sanchez at 1B with the Indianapolis Indians. While the defense of Sanchez is in question, we do know that he can provide some pop once in a while. In 26 games this year with the Pirates, Sanchez hit .267 with two home runs and 13 RBIs. Sanchez also had 10 home runs and 42 RBIs in Indianapolis.

Most likely, the Pirates will carry three catchers on their postseason roster, since both Martin and Stewart are battling through injuries. The Pirates better hope Martin can fight through this hamstring injury and be behind the plate for the Wild Card game against the San Francisco Giants and beyond. They need his bat in the five-hole and they need him behind the plate to keep this pitching staff under control. If the Pirates have to default to their third catcher in Sanchez, it may get ugly on the base paths and on the scoreboard.

Nate Vandergrift is a Pirates writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on twitter @natevandergrift, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

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