🖥 TAP TO SAVE 50% WITH CODE THANKS
X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Fantasy Implications - J.D. Martinez to the Red Sox

Boston Red Sox OF JD Martinez is on a new team for the 2018 MLB season. Michael Grennell analyzes his move to the AL East to see whether his ADP will rise or fall.

The national nightmare is finally over. After weeks upon months of fantasy owners developing carpal tunnel syndrome from hitting F5 repeatedly, desperately searching for any new updates, J.D. Martinez has signed a five-year, $110 million contract with the Boston Red Sox.

After accumulating a .251 average and .687 on-base plus slugging percentage with 24 home runs over his first three seasons with the Houston Astros, Martinez has become one of the top sluggers in the game. Since joining the Tigers in 2014, Martinez has hit .300 with 128 home runs and a .936 OPS — the sixth highest OPS among players with at least 2,000 plate appearances over that time span.

The signing of Martinez does pose an interesting question for Boston now: Who will play where? Last season, the Red Sox sported an outfield trio of Andrew Benintendi, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Mookie Betts with Hanley Ramirez getting the majority of the playing time at designated hitter. Now, barring any trades or injuries, all four will be on the roster in 2018, along with Martinez. So who is going to lose playing time now in Boston? As Scott Boras undoubtedly skips down Yawkey Way whistling with glee, let's take a look at the what this signing will mean to fantasy owners this season.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and resources:

 

Heading to Greener Grass?

Splitting time between Detroit and Arizona last season, Martinez put up the best numbers of his career, batting .303 with a career-high 1.066 OPS and 45 HR. Martinez also set a career-high with a 10.8 percent walk rate, marking his fourth consecutive year of increasing his walk rate. While his strikeout rate was up almost one and a half percent from 2016, his 26.2 K% was the fourth-lowest of his career.

The one big concern for Martinez entering the season is how will his home run totals be affected by playing half of his games at Fenway Park? Last season, Comerica Park and Chase Field were two of the top-10 most hitter-friendly stadiums when it came to home runs. Fenway Park, on the other hand, was among the bottom 10 in the league. Martinez hit 24 of his 45 home runs to right-center or right field in 2017, and while Fenway's right field fence is the closest to home plate of the three parks, the distances to right-center and deep right-center field are between seven and 15 feet further at Fenway than either Comerica or Chase. In seven career games at Fenway Park, Martinez has never hit a home run there. While that will certainly change this season, fantasy owners should likely expect closer to 30 HR than 45 in 2018.

Moving into the Boston lineup, Martinez should see an increase in his counting numbers. After joining the Diamondbacks halfway through last year, he recorded 26 more RBI and nine more runs in 25 more plate appearances than his totals in Detroit. Arizona had the eighth-highest scoring offense last year, averaging 5.01 runs per game, while Boston was 10th in the league, averaging 4.85 runs per game.

With all that in mind, it seems like Martinez should be in line for roughly 35 HR, with 90 runs and 115 RBI in Boston. Our rankings currently have Martinez as the No. 8 outfielder, with a target draft range of early in the third round. Now that he's with the Red Sox, he is likely worth picking up in the late second round and might even be worth taking over Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge — our No. 7 outfielder.

As far as the effect his signing will have on the Red Sox outfield, it will primarily impact Jackie Bradley Jr. While Bradley was likely not going to have an impact in mixed leagues, he was may have had some value in AL-only leagues in 2018. Bradley hit 17 HR last year and 26 HR in 2016, and could've been in line for at least 20 HR this year. Based on his 14.5 percent HR/FB rate in 2017 — which was 3.5 percent lower than his average from the previous two seasons — 2018 could have seen a bump in his power numbers. Now barring trade or injury, Bradley will be undraftable in anything but deep AL-only leagues.

 

More 2018 Player Outlooks




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Geno Smith

has "a Good Chance" to Return in Week 16
Saquon Barkley

Back at Practice on Wednesday
Brady Cook

Will Start Again in Week 16
Patrick Mahomes

Rehabbing ACL, LCL Tears
Rashee Rice

Won't Practice Due to Concussion
Marvin Harrison Jr.

to Take Part in Wednesday's Walkthrough Practice
Drake London

Day-to-Day, Will Practice on Wednesday
CFB

Jeremiyah Love Officially Heading to NFL Draft
Quinn Ewers

Making First Career Start in Week 16
Tua Tagovailoa

Being Benched by Dolphins
CFB

Jake Merklinger Leaving Tennessee for Transfer Portal
Jeremy Ruckert

Jets, Jeremy Ruckert Agree to a Two-Year Extension
Thatcher Demko

Shuts Out Rangers With 23 Saves
Macklin Celebrini

Notches Four Points in Tuesday's Win
Leon Draisaitl

Reaches Special Milestone During Four-Point Night
Shea Theodore

Questionable for Wednesday Night
Jack Eichel

Battling Illness
Darcy Kuemper

Placed on Injured Reserve
Brandon Montour

Hurt on Tuesday
Sam Merrill

Remains on Shelf Wednesday
Max Strus

Still Out Wednesday
Ayo Dosunmu

May Miss Another Game Wednesday
Brandon Clarke

Upgraded to Questionable on Injury Report
Cam Spencer

Unavailable Wednesday
Mike Conley

Remains Sidelined Wednesday
Zach LaVine

to Be Re-Evaluated in One Week
Mike Trout

Angels Open to Mike Trout Playing Center Field in 2026
Victor Wembanyama

Coming off the Bench on Tuesday Night
Rudy Gobert

Not on the Injury Report for Wednesday
Anthony Edwards

on the Injury Report Again for Wednesday Night
Ja Morant

Questionable for Wednesday's Meeting With Timberwolves
Saquon Barkley

Misses Practice With Stinger
RJ Harvey

Dealing With Rib Injury
Josh Jacobs

Intends to Play Against Bears on Saturday
Zach Bogosian

Misses Tuesday's Game
Marcus Johansson

Unavailable Tuesday
Artyom Levshunov

Scratched for Tuesday
Mathew Barzal

a Game-Time Call Tuesday
Joseph Woll

Returns to Action Tuesday
Mike Matheson

Won't Play on Tuesday
Rasmus Ristolainen

Makes Season Debut Tuesday
Bam Knight

Cardinals Place Bam Knight on Injured Reserve
CFB

Kansas State's Jayce Brown Intends to Transfer
CFB

Nation's Leading Passer Drew Mestemaker to Enter Transfer Portal
Justin Crawford

Phillies Planning to Start Justin Crawford in Center Field
CFB

Jayden Maiava Signs New Deal to Return to USC
CFB

Aidan Mizell Won't Return to Florida, Entering Transfer Portal
CFB

East Carolina Targeting Jordan Davis as Next Offensive Coordinator
Patrick Mahomes

Targeting Week 1 Return in 2026
Cutter Gauthier

Scores Twice at MSG
CFB

Michigan QB Jadyn Davis Set to Enter Transfer Portal
CFB

Travis Williams Joining Texas A&M Defensive Staff
Tim Stützle

Tim Stutzle Records Three Assists in Dramatic Win
Filip Forsberg

Nets 11th Career Hat Trick
Sam Reinhart

Pots Two Goals Against Lightning
Darcy Kuemper

Hurt Versus Stars
Gustav Forsling

Injured in Monday's Win
Brandon Hagel

Makes Early Exit Monday
Cooper Flagg

Becomes Youngest 40-Point Scorer in NBA History
Victor Wembanyama

May Come Off the Bench Again Tuesday
Nikola Jović

Nikola Jovic to Undergo MRI Tuesday
Sam Hauser

Tweaks Left Ankle Monday
Peyton Watson

Not Expected to Be Out Long-Term
Ja Morant

Injures Ankle in Monday's Win
Darren Waller

Hauls in Two Touchdowns in Monday Night Loss
Brandon Clarke

Still Out Monday
Rome Odunze

Considered Week-to-Week With Foot Injury
James Harden

Officially Active on Monday Night
Ja Morant

to Remain Under Minutes Restriction Monday
James Harden

a Game-Time Call Monday
Davante Adams

Considered Week-to-Week With Hamstring Injury
Jaylen Warren

to Play Through Illness on Monday Night
Bhayshul Tuten

to Miss a Few Weeks With Finger Injury
Joe Burrow

Will Start the Rest of the Season
CFB

Dylan Raiola Entering His Name into Transfer Portal
CFB

Cincinnati's Brendan Sorsby Plans to Transfer When Portal Opens
Adolis García

Adolis Garcia, Phillies Finalizing One-Year Deal on Monday
Brandon Royval

Suffers First-Round TKO Loss
CFB

Baylor, LSU, Miami Among Potential Suitors for DJ Lagway
CFB

Aidan Chiles Will Enter Transfer Portal
Manel Kape

Shines At UFC Vegas 112
Kevin Vallejos

Gets Second-Round Knockout Win
Giga Chikadze

Suffers His First Career Knockout Loss
CFB

Quarterback DJ Lagway Entering Transfer Portal
Cesar Almeida

Gets Dominated
Cezary Oleksiejczuk

Wins Sixth Fight In A Row
Morgan Charrière

Morgan Charriere Suffers First-Round Knockout Loss
Melquizael Costa

Gets First-Round Knockout Win
Marcus Buchecha

Still Winless In The UFC
Kennedy Nzechukwu

And Marcus Buchecha Fight To Draw
Lance Gibson jr

Lance Gibson Jr. Drops Decision In His UFC Debut
King Green

Gets Back In The Win Column
Kenley Jansen

Agrees to One-Year Deal With Tigers
Merrill Kelly

Returns to Diamondbacks on Two-Year Deal
Jorge Polanco

Agrees to Two-Year Deal With Mets
CFB

LaNorris Sellers to Return to South Carolina in 2026
CFB

Washington State Expected to Hire Kirby Moore as Next Head Coach
CFB

Kyle Whittingham Stepping Down as Utah Head Coach
Manel Kape

Set For UFC Vegas 112 Main Event
Brandon Royval

An Underdog At UFC Vegas 112
Kevin Vallejos

Set For His Third UFC Fight
Giga Chikadze

In Dire Need Of Victory
Cesar Almeida

Set To Welcome Cezary Oleksiejczuk To The UFC
Cezary Oleksiejczuk

Set To Make His UFC Debut
Maikel Garcia

Royals Agree on Five-Year Extension
Melquizael Costa

Looks To Extend His Win Streak
Morgan Charrière

Morgan Charriere Looks to Win Second Consecutive Fights
Marcus Buchecha

Looks To Bounce Back
CFB

Sherrone Moore Charged with Home Invasion, Among Other Charges
CFB

Freddie Kitchens Fired from North Carolina Coaching Staff
CFB

Bryce Underwood Could Leave Michigan Without Buyout

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP