Mets' J.D. Martinez contributes in debut, but club still falls to Cardinals
J.D. Martinez #28 of the Mets connects on his sixth inning RBI double against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citi Field on Friday, April 26, 2024. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Carlos Mendoza got just a little bit of a thrill from finally — finally! — penciling J.D. Martinez’s name into the lineup on Friday, but even as he talked about it, the Mets’ manager cautioned against putting too much pressure on the team’s new designated hitter.
He’s a part of the puzzle, Mendoza said, not the whole thing. And on Friday night he did everything to prove Mendoza was right.
Despite having played in only three minor-league games, Martinez had a sterling Mets debut, but it wasn’t enough as they fell to the Cardinals, 4-2, at Citi Field.
“I was just trying to go up there and be competitive,” he said. “That was my whole thing today, put the ball forward, and I did it twice . . . It was just kind of [about] getting my bearings and getting into a routine again.”
Martinez, who signed a one-year, $12 million deal on March 23 but was sidelined with a balky back, went 2-for-4 with an RBI double. Tomas Nido hit his first homer of the season, but none of that could make up for two costly mistakes by starter Jose Butto. It also didn’t help that the Mets went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
The Cardinals broke through in the second when Butto hit Nolan Arenado and walked Paul Goldschmidt to bring up Alec Burleson, who put a charge on an 85-mph changeup left over the plate, blasting it 412 feet to the Shea Bridge in right for a 3-0 lead.
St. Louis added one more in the third when Willson Contreras got a hanging sinker and didn’t miss it, hitting a 445-foot no-doubter to left for a 4-0 advantage.
Butto struck out four and allowed four runs, four hits and three walks in 5 2⁄3 innings.
“I just made two mistakes in the beginning but I just continued working,” he said.
The Mets finally got one back with two outs in the fifth when Nido drove Miles Mikolas’ 1-and-2 sinker into the Mets’ bullpen in right. They made it 4-2 in the sixth when Francisco Lindor doubled with one out and scored on Martinez’s double to the wall in right — his second hit and first RBI as a Met.
Mikolas struck out five and allowed seven hits, two runs and no walks in 5 2⁄3 innings.
Still, the immediate returns from Martinez were encouraging.
“It feels good — I’m not going to lie — writing that lineup and putting his name to paper,” Mendoza said before the game. “At the same time, I don’t think it’s fair to put that pressure on him . . . It’s one of those where you just want to make our lineup a lot deeper. We’ve got a lot of good hitters here, but having J.D. finally in our lineup obviously is a good thing.”
Martinez, 36, is a six-time All-Star, a consistent and legitimate power bat, and a student of the game who is eager to impart his knowledge to the Mets’ younger hitters. He slashed .271/.321/.572 with 33 home runs and 103 RBIs in 113 games last season with the Dodgers.
He batted fifth on Friday, behind Pete Alonso. It’s a chance to provide protection for a player who (an injured Francisco Alvarez notwithstanding) hasn’t had too much firepower behind him in the lineup the last few years.
“You look at every great team out there, elite lineup, and they have threats in the middle of the lineup to hold it down,” Martinez said. “It puts thoughts into pitchers’ minds, into the opponents, attacking guys early and trying to keep guys off base for the heart of the order.”
Martinez won’t play every day, Mendoza said, but conversations on how to best preserve him will be ongoing. He’s dealt with back problems since 2019 but was able to find a regimen that worked last year, and “knock on wood, I’m hoping it works this season too,” Martinez said.
The Mets designated Zack Short for assignment to make room for Martinez on the roster. DJ Stewart, who’d mostly been performing DH duties, will get opportunities in left, right and first when the Mets need to spell their starters, Mendoza said.
Despite missed opportunities Friday, “you see signs [of the lineup clicking], especially when you have a game like Lindor had the other day [in which he collected four hits and four RBIs],” Mendoza said. “It’s a good lineup, and adding a name like J.D., coupled with some of the names I’ve already got on this lineup, it’s deep.”
And though his manager didn’t want to put too much pressure on him, Martinez said he had one prevailing thought when the Mets started this season with five straight losses: “Try to hurry up.”
“I want to obviously be a part of it — if they’re struggling and if they’re doing good, I want to be doing good with them,” he said. “It’s part of being a team. Unfortunately, signing so late, I didn’t really get to know the guys and hang out with them, but I’m here now and I’m hoping I’ll make an impact.”
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
