Pirates Russell Martin nominated for Cooperstown

Russell Martin should be in the Hall of Fame just for winning the Pirates a playoff game.

The Baseball Writers Association of America recently revealed their candidates for the 2025 Hall of Fame Ballot. Among the players nominated was the former Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Russell Martin.

This is Martin’s first year on the Hall of Fame ballot since retiring from baseball in 2019. Drafted by the Dodgers in the 17th round of the 2002 draft, Martin became a standout catcher in the Major Leagues since his debut in 2006. After four years with the Dodgers and then two with the New York Yankees, Martin signed with Pittsburgh as a free-agent.

During his time in Pittsburgh, Martin had 209 hits and scored 96 runs over 238 games played. Of course though his most famous moment came during the 2013 season, when he hit a pair of homers in the NL Wild Card Game against Cincinnati, lifting Pittsburgh over the Reds in a 6-2 victory. His performance truly embodied what playoff baseball in Pittsburgh could be like in a new generation, with “Buctober” in full swing.

The four-time All-Star would play out the rest of his career in his native Canada with the Toronto Blue Jays, before being traded back to the Dodgers in 2019 where he played in 83 games before retiring upon the season’s end.

A standout defensive presence at his position, Martin led his league in put outs four times, assists four times, as well as caught stealing six times. He also had four seasons of at least 20 home runs and is one of just three catchers in baseball history to have at least 100 stolen bases with at least 150 homers as well. The other two players being Carlton Fisk and Ivan Rodriguez, who are both in the Hall of Fame.

For his career, Russell Martin has a .248/.349/.397 split with 191 home runs, 1416 hits, and 771 RBIs. He’s also been awarded the Silver Slugger award, as well as a Gold Glove for his defensive efforts.