A.J. Ellis just wanted a chance.
Now he's got it.
Russell Martin will be gone for four to six weeks with a pulled groin muscle. As a result, he'll definitely miss the rest of Spring Training and Opening Day. For a guy that plays in what seems like every game, this is surprising news.
The backup is Brad Ausmus, but he's 40-years-old and not up to the challenges of catching everyday. So, Joe Torre will keep him in the same role while handing over the reigns to Ellis. After playing in only 12 big league games, Ellis is finally given the chance to show what he has.
In looking at last year's stats, he certainly looks like he has something. At Triple-A Albuquerque, he hit .314 with a .438 OBP in 90 games. He has more career walks than strikeouts, so he can be a solid hitter at the bottom of the order to keep innings going.
My guess is once the regular season starts, Ausmus will see more time than usual. After all, he's a former All-Star, and somehow hit .295 in limited action last year. Plus, he's a great defensive catcher.
As for Martin, he worked hard this offseason to try and shake off a pretty bad 2009 by adding 25 pounds of muscle. Now, he'll have to wait a little while longer to show if that helped or not. It's not a good start, but could be much worse. Better to get your injury out of the way now than during the regular season.
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