Detroit Tigers: Victor Martinez Has Outstanding Numbers Against Pretty Much Every Elite Pitcher

Victor Martinez Against the Rest of Baseball’s Elite Starters

Outside of the American League Central, it’s the same story. Name a frontline starting pitcher, and Victor Martinez probably has favorable numbers against him.

In 31 plate appearances against Felix Hernandez, Martinez is a .360 hitter with a .964 OPS.

The designated hitter has had similar success against Hernandez’ Seattle teammate Hisashi Iwakuma, who has seen the 38-year-old hit .389 with six RBI, two home runs, two walks, a double and a 1.228 OPS against him in 20 plate appearances.

Baltimore’s Chris Tillman has faced Victor Martinez 21 times. The designated hitter has come away with the upper hand in many of those plate appearances.

He’s accumulated a .300 batting average, an .833 OPS, a home run and a double.

Martinez has faced Dallas Keuchel 15 times, and has come away with a .400 batting average, a home run and an OPS of 1.000.

Former Teammates

He’s also gotten the better of ex-teammate David Price, with eight hits, five RBI, three home runs and a pair of doubles in 17 career plate appearances.

That’s good for a .471 batting average and a 1.118 slugging percentage.

Additionally, Martinez has collected four this in 10 trips to the plate against former Tiger Max Scherzer.

Price and Scherzer aren’t the only former teammates who have had trouble getting the designated hitter out.

Current Chicago Cub Jon Lester and Martinez have faced off 28 times. In total, Martinez owns a .360 batting average, a .429 on-base percentage, a .640 slugging percentage and a 1.069 OPS.

Detroit’s hitter has also collected four RBI, three walks, two doubles, a home run and a triple against Lester.

Other Frontline Pitchers

Moving down the line, Martinez has faced Rich Hill 12 times and has come away with a .364 batting average.

The slugger is also a .333 hitter in nine at-bats against Sonny Gray.

Some may be small sample sizes. However, the fact that Martinez has had success against so many top starters will bodes well moving forward.

These numbers could be extremely helpful to the Tigers, especially in the playoffs, where elite starting pitchers take center stage.

With Boston, Cleveland, Seattle and the Cubs all potential playoff opponents for Detroit, Martinez may well get the chance to match up with the likes of Sale, Price, Kluber, Hernandez and Lester in October.

Next: Tigers Smart to Add 1B Depth

Should that happen, the Detroit Tigers will have the advantage.