BOSTON — Last Wednesday, Chris Martin was promoted from the injured list to the Red Sox active roster without getting past the “go,” collecting $200, or rehabbing in the minor leagues.
He just started pitching again, seemingly impervious to the inflammation in his elbow that sidelined him in early July. That he pitched so well makes Martin’s return all the more remarkable. In three appearances, Martin threw three scoreless innings, allowing just two hits – both singles – and recording six strikeouts. As always, he was a strike-throwing machine, with 72 percent of his pitches being strikes and no walks.
Rehab? Who needs it?
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But even Martin admitted he was surprised he could be so successful without even playing in a short minor league season.
“To be honest, yes, I’m surprised,” Martin said. “Obviously, this is the first time I’ve come out of an IL situation without doing any rehab. I think mechanically speaking, you can still do a lot (off the field) with dry training and the like. Only the recovery was a question mark.”
When asked why he decided to skip at least one or two minor league rehab appearances, Martin pointed to the playoff race and the calendar.
“We’re running out of time,” he said. “I felt like the bullpen was being worked pretty hard. We’re in the thick of a playoff fight, so I thought, ‘Might as well go out there and get competitive.’ Sometimes when you’re rehabbing, you’re not as competitive. Hopefully this could speed up the process.”
His return timing couldn’t have been better. The Red Sox are without Justin Slaten and sent two left-handed relievers back to Worcester last week. The bullpen has been hit hard since the All-Star break, and a fresh – and capable – arm was more than welcome.
“He was good, the stuff was good, the control was great,” Alex Cora said. “Obviously we have to be careful when we play back-to-backs and stuff. We talked about a call-in (at first), but a call-in at Worcester at 100 percent is basically a call-in here because he’s so good. We need him. We have to be careful, especially at the beginning. But eventually he’ll do back-to-backs and be all in.”
Martin’s season has been interrupted three times this year. He started the season with left shoulder pain, but managed to overcome it despite throwing, then a stint on the injured list for anxiety, followed by an elbow injury.
“Now it feels like he’s almost at 100 percent,” Cora said. “We’ll be able to use him properly and I think he’ll be able to contribute.”
Martin was used in the final game of a six-game road trip last Wednesday. Facing major league hitters for the first time in over a month, Martin shut down the Kansas City Royals with 15 pitches in order, knocking the team out.
“Obviously the results helped mentally,” Martin said. “It was good for the brain.”
On Saturday, he allowed a single in a shutout inning as the Red Sox tried to catch up with Houston. And on Monday night, as the Red Sox tied Texas in the late innings, Martin pitched his usual eighth inning, allowing just one hit and recording two strikeouts.
The bigger challenge for him so far has not been on the mound, but rather between outings as he tries to rebuild the endurance of his throwing arm and speed up his recovery.
“Overall, my body feels good, so that’s a good sign,” Martin said. “Stuff is OK. Velocity is down a little bit, but that’s to be expected. I feel like I’m holding my shot really well. That’s what we’ve been working on here, doing dry runs and stuff like that. I feel like the ball is coming out pretty good, so when the velocity comes back, we’ll be in a really good place.”
Martin compares his current state to how he might feel after spring training – building strength while building his back arm strength.
