BOSTON, MA – JULY 13: J.D. Martinez #28 of the Boston Red Sox bats during an intrasquad game during a summer camp workout before the start of the 2020 Major League Baseball season on July 13, 2020 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. The season was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
At least one Boston Red Sox star has championship aspirations in mind.
J.D. Martinez is ready for Spring Training. The Sox designated hitter and three-time All-Star is betting on himself, hoping to rebound after a disastrous 60-game season in which he hit just .213 with seven home runs. The COVID-19 shortened campaign hurt the statistical numbers of many of baseball’s finest, but one has to wonder if Martinez’s pitfall is a sign of things to come.
Martinez has an altered mindset heading into what should be a full-length 2021 season. In fact, J.D. channeled Tom Brady to get that point across, sporting a shirt with the six-time Super Bowl winner on it.
Yes, that’s Brady celebrating his latest Super Bowl win with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, perhaps a little too inebriated. It’s tough to blame Brady given the circumstances, and it’s clear he’s let loose while not under the reign of Bill Belichick in the Florida sunshine.
Do the Red Sox have any chance of following in Brady’s footsteps?
It would take a major surprise for the Red Sox to win another World Series of their own this season. And that’s not to take an unwarranted shot at Boston — Chaim Bloom appears to have a plan in place. Yet, that plan probably doesn’t reach paydirt this season or even next. Boston fans must be patient, which is a lot to ask for a city with some many championships in recent memory.
Martinez can rake when he’s at his best, and getting the slugger to full strength and aiming for his normal statistical aspirations will be a big help one way or another. Even in an empty Fenway Park, the Sox remain one of the best shows in town.