J. C. Martin
| J. C. Martin | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Catcher | |||
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Born: December 13, 1936 Axton, Virginia |
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| MLB debut | |||
| September 10, 1959, for the Chicago White Sox | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| August 12, 1972, for the Chicago Cubs | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .222 | ||
| Home runs | 32 | ||
| Runs batted in | 230 | ||
| Teams | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
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Joseph Clifton Martin (born December 13, 1936 in Axton, Virginia, United States) is a former Major League Baseball player. The left-handed hitting, right-handed throwing Martin played for the Chicago White Sox from 1959 to 1967, the New York Mets in 1968 and 1969 and finished up his career with the Chicago Cubs from 1970 to 1972.
Martin was scouted by the White Sox as an amateur free agent in 1956. After five seasons in the ChiSox farm system, which included call-ups to the majors late in 1959 and 1960, Martin became a regular in 1961. Splitting time between first and third base, Martin batted .230 with five home runs and 32 runs batted in.
Martin converted into a catcher in 1962, after Al Lopez convinced him to go down to the minor leagues and learn to catch. Regular catcher Sherm Lollar was at the tail end of his career at the age of 37; moreover, the White Sox had traded Earl Battey and Johnny Romano and had no catchers in their farm system. As the team’s regular catcher, Martin batted only .205 in 1963 and .197 in 1964.
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