ANAHEIM, Calif. – It was several hours before the start of Monday’s game, and David Ortiz’s eyes suddenly widened. He had not seen the lineup card, and so when informed that Victor Martinez would be activated for the game – after four weeks on the sidelines due to a fracture on the tip of his left thumb – Ortiz was thrilled.
“Really? He’s not going through rehab or anything? No way!” Ortiz said of his teammate’s return. “Is he catching? Man, I didn’t even know that. That’s good news. He’s a great hitter. He’s a great hitter. Having him back, I’m totally surprised. I didn’t know anything about that.
“Man, I’m telling you. That is going to be huge for us,” Ortiz added. “He’s a great hitter. Our offense hasn’t been that good lately. Having him back can only help us.”
Ortiz’ excitement was understandable. The Red Sox are already familiar with the lineup jolt that Martinez can deliver. It was a year ago this week, after all, that the switch-hitting catcher helped to transform the Sox lineup. Indeed, there are some interesting similarities between the circumstances that greeted his acquisition in a deadline deal in 2009 and the Sox’ July slump this year.
Last July had been the worst of the season for the Sox. The team’s offense had withered (during a period when the team was getting little production from its catchers), resulting in a series of one- and two-run losses in low-scoring games.
That was the situation that faced the Sox when they found the perfect solution. The team – which averaged 4.8 runs per game that month – made the move to acquire Martinez at the July 31 trade deadline.
The results were nearly instantaneous: Martinez drove in a run in his first game with the Sox to help the club to a win, then collected five hits and drove in four runs in his second game with his new team.
The Sox endured some offensive struggles over the next week, but by mid-August, the lineup with Martinez had become robust. Over the final 52 games of the season, the Sox led the majors in scoring, averaging nearly six runs per game.
“It was from the second he got here. He made our lineup a lot longer than it was,” recalled Jason Varitek. “A few weeks after he got here, we felt the effects of him being in the lineup. J.D. [Drew] started swinging the bat well, [Ortiz] started swinging the bat well. It made our offense that much better.”
On Monday, Martinez almost instantaneously had the same effect in the Sox’ 6-3 win over the Angels. In the top of the second inning, after Adrian Beltre’s leadoff triple, Martinez jumped on the first pitch he saw – a 91 mph fastball from Angels starter Dan Haren – and lined it to right-center to drive in a run.
The hit represented the first RBI by a Sox catcher since June 29. The July combination of Kevin Cash, Gustavo Molina and Dusty Brown had not driven in a single run. Martinez – without even the benefit of a rehab game – had issued a reminder that he can make a difference in a Sox lineup that entered the day averaging exactly four runs per game in July.
“Our lineup was more formidable, [because] we had Victor back,” said Ortiz. “I give Victor a lot of credit for just being activated and not trying to go to rehab. Unbelievable. He looked great to me. He looked like he had better timing than myself.”
Whether a coincidence or not, the two players whom Varitek remembered getting hot following Martinez’ arrival a year ago – Ortiz and Drew – also had big nights on Monday. Ortiz, batting cleanup, crushed a pair of homers. Drew nearly smashed one of his own, instead seeing his drive to deep right in the top of the ninth inning crash off the top of the fence in right-field for a two-run double.
For the night, Martinez went 1-for-4. Perhaps more importantly, he emerged from the game having faced and caught live pitching feeling good. The 31-year-old is now hitting .288 with an .809 OPS, positively robust numbers compared to what the Sox managed from their catchers in his absence.
“I was having a lot of fun out there. I didn’t feel anything,” said Martinez. “If I’m going in there, it’s because I know that I can compete. If I knew that I couldn’t compete, I’d just go and try to go see some pitches. But like I told you earlier, I was going out there looking for good pitching and to take good swings.”
That approach, in turn, suggests that, for the second straight year, Martinez could prove a difference-making presence for the Sox as they prepare to head into August. He represents the first step in the return to health of the team’s roster.

It is not quite accurate, the Sox suggested, to view the catcher as being the equivalent of a trade-deadline acquisition for the second straight year. The team leaned on the catcher at the start of the season -- particularly during his scorching June -- and so the team views his return as a matter of restoring what was lost, rather than adding on in the days leading up to July 31.
Even so, the Sox feel like the middle of their order – which yesterday featured Drew batting second, followed by Kevin Youkilis, David Ortiz, Beltre and Martinez – has already become stronger. At least based on initial returns, there is a different feel to the lineup now that the All-Star catcher is once again a part of it.
“We can’t expect Victor to carry us. We need our full lineup,” said Varitek. “[But] it’s definitely going to be a boost. It may take a little time. It may not. He’ll make our lineup longer. You’re adding a .300 hitter who has the ability to drive in runs and the potential to hit some longballs. It’s big.”