Diamondbacks' Justin Martinez on track to lock down role among relievers

BALTIMORE — Justin Martinez spun around, skipped backward down the mound and pointed to the heavens. Walking off the field, he blew on the back of his right hand, as if to extinguish the fire it had just produced. Over the preceding six batters, he had recorded five outs, all by strikeout.

The final victim was Cedric Mullins, who could only slam his bat on the ground in some mix of frustration and confusion. In his seven-year career, Mullins had never seen a pitch quite like the one he swung over for strike three, a 91 mph splitter that dropped 39 inches on its way to the plate.

In the Diamondbacks’ bullpen, awe-struck relievers looked up at the pitch-tracking metrics displayed on Camden Yards’ scoreboard, not quite believing what they were seeing. Two days later in the visiting clubhouse, they were still expressing their amazement.

“Justin Martinez gets in, it's like, grab the popcorn,” Ryan Thompson said. “That dude, when he's on, it feels like it's nothing you've ever seen before.”

These are the types of reactions Martinez has earned more and more often lately. In nine appearances this season, he’s worked 11⅔ innings, striking out 14 batters and allowing just one run. It’s been the next step for a pitcher long believed to have the talent to one day become the Diamondbacks' closer.

The issue has been maximizing that talent. Last year, Martinez struck out 14 batters in 10 innings of a brief big-league cameo, but he also walked over a batter per inning. His ERA was 12.60.

In spring training, the focus on Martinez’s control was such that the Diamondbacks created a physical strike zone out of string for him to aim at when he threw bullpen sessions. He remains an unfinished product, with eight unintentional walks in 11⅔ innings, but the progress has been significant.

And for the Diamondbacks, it could be crucial. The back end of their bullpen is solidified by Thompson, Kevin Ginkel and Paul Sewald. Joe Mantiply has a role against lefty-heavy portions of opposing orders. But the rest of the bullpen remains in flux. Who pitches late in a tie game, or with a one-run deficit? Who pitches when one of the aforementioned trio is unavailable? So far, the Diamondbacks haven’t found a consistent answer. Martinez could fix that.

“I want him to be that guy,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “… I don't want to front run with who's hot and who's doing it. I want to be able to stick with guys. But that part of our bullpen is wide open. And I want somebody to emerge and take it. And he has had a couple of really good outings and I think he's on the right path for sure.”

Sunday game recap: Diamondbacks avoid sweep against Orioles with offensive outburst

Martinez’s growth has not been spurred by any mechanical change imposed by the Diamondbacks’ coaching staff. “I'm smart enough to realize that he's on a good roll and we don't clutter his mind right now,” pitching coach Brent Strom said. The focus, instead, is on helping him find the right body awareness.

“There's a rhythm and tempo,” pitching coordinator Dan Carlson said. “It's like practice rounds of golf.”

Last year, Martinez was like a golfer trying to drive the green on a par five. Now, he’s finding a better balance.

“He can still pitch at a 95-98% and everything's gonna be good,” Carlson said. “When you're younger, sometimes you're afraid. It's not backing off but if all you know is to throw haymakers, you think that's what you need all the time. You don't need the haymaker all the time.”

There’s also a more tangible change Martinez made, one implemented this off-season.

After debuting last year, he threw his four-seam fastball 59.7% of the time. And while that pitch averaged over 100 mph, it doesn’t move in a way that deceives big-league hitters. That, combined with poor command, enabled opposing hitters to bat .423 against the pitch.

This year, Martinez’s four-seam usage is down to 22.9%, with the difference largely made up by a new sinker. The results have been incredible. No pitcher in baseball is getting batters to swing and miss as often against sinkers as Martinez is.

“It's a different look,” Strom said. “Hitters don't hit the (radar) gun, they hit what they see or don't see.”

Add that sinker — which also averages over 100 mph — to the rest of his repertoire and you get a recipe for the success Martinez has had thus far. Both his splitter and slider are elite at getting swing-and-miss. Put it together and batters are whiffing on 40.4% of their swings against Martinez. Only four pitchers have been better in as large a sample size.

Now, it’s a matter of commanding his fastballs and avoiding walks.

“The secret's out,” Strom said. “This guy is gonna be special.”

The question, for the Diamondbacks, is how soon?

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks hope Justin Martinez can solidify role among relievers