Jerry Martin
Encyclopedia
Jerry Lindsey Martin is a former Major League Baseball
outfielder
. He is the son of major league pitcher
Barney Martin
.
Martin was signed as an amateur free agent
by the Philadelphia Phillies
on July 17, 1971. Over the span of his 11-year career, Martin played for a total of five teams: the Philadelphia Phillies
(1974–1978), the Chicago Cubs
(1979–1980), the San Francisco Giants
(1981), the Kansas City Royals
(1982–1983), and the New York Mets
(1984). The right-handed hitting Martin was almost exclusively an outfielder
during his big league career.
and Willie Aikens
, was arrested and charged with attempting to purchase cocaine
. All four pleaded guilty to misdemeanor
drug charges and were sentenced to 180 days at a Florida
minimum security prison, served time at Fort Worth, Texas, Federal Correctional Institution, becoming the first active major leaguers to serve jail time. The group was released from prison after serving only 90 days. Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn
subsequently suspended all four for the entire 1984 season, but the suspensions were reduced after appeal and the four were allowed to return to their teams on May 15.
, the Detroit Tigers
' AA affiliate.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
. He is the son of major league pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
Barney Martin
Barney Martin (baseball)
Barnes Robertson Martin was an American baseball pitcher who appeared in one game for the Cincinnati Reds in . He batted and threw right-handed....
.
Martin was signed as an amateur free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
by the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
on July 17, 1971. Over the span of his 11-year career, Martin played for a total of five teams: the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
(1974–1978), the Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
(1979–1980), the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
(1981), the Kansas City Royals
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From 1973 to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium...
(1982–1983), and the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
(1984). The right-handed hitting Martin was almost exclusively an outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
during his big league career.
Infamy
In October 1983, Martin, along with teammates Willie Wilson, Vida BlueVida Blue
Vida Rochelle Blue Jr. is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. During a 17-year career, he pitched for the Oakland Athletics , San Francisco Giants , and Kansas City Royals He won the American League Cy Young award and Most Valuable Player Award in 1971...
and Willie Aikens
Willie Aikens
Willie Mays Aikens is a former Major League Baseball first baseman. He had established himself as one of the top sluggers in the game before drugs derailed his career. In , Aikens was sentenced to twenty years in prison on four counts of crack cocaine distribution and one count of use of a firearm...
, was arrested and charged with attempting to purchase cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
. All four pleaded guilty to misdemeanor
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a "lesser" criminal act in many common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished much less severely than felonies, but theoretically more so than administrative infractions and regulatory offences...
drug charges and were sentenced to 180 days at a Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
minimum security prison, served time at Fort Worth, Texas, Federal Correctional Institution, becoming the first active major leaguers to serve jail time. The group was released from prison after serving only 90 days. Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn
Bowie Kuhn
Bowie Kent Kuhn was an American lawyer and sports administrator who served as the fifth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from February 4, , to September 30,...
subsequently suspended all four for the entire 1984 season, but the suspensions were reduced after appeal and the four were allowed to return to their teams on May 15.
Coaching career
Martin is now the hitting coach for the Erie SeaWolvesErie SeaWolves
The Erie SeaWolves are a minor league baseball team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers Major League Baseball club....
, the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
' AA affiliate.