Justin Martin wasn't used to relieving, but he warmed up to it over his first professional season in 1988, his hometown Salem Statesman Journal wrote.
In fact, he enjoyed it, Martin told The Statesman Journal.
"I get more opportunities to show what I can do," Martin told The Statesman Journal. "And I've been getting a lot more innings lately."
Martin ended up showing what he could do over four professional seasons. He topped out at single-A.
Martin's career began that year in 1988, signed by the Angels after being taken in the 35th round of the draft out of Salem's McKay High School the previous year.
After being drafted, Martin recalled to The Statesman Journal being unsure early on if he'd garnered enough interest to be taken.
"Early in the season I was thinking about being drafted," Martin told The Statesman Journal. "But I got worried because at one game there were two scouts with radar guns, and they left after two innings. I said, 'There goes my chance.'"
Martin, however, didn't sign until right before the 1988 draft. He played that year at short-season Bend. He went 6-1 over 31 relief appearances, with a 4.22 ERA.
He played 1989 between Bend, single-A Quad City and the rookie Arizona League. He went 2-12 over 23 outings, 18 starts overall, with a 6.73 ERA.
He returned to Quad City for an abbreviated 1990, eight relief appearances. Ligament damage in his throwing elbow cut short that season. But he returned for 1991.
"It's nice just to be able to go out and pitch again," Martin told The Quad-City Times in May 1991. "I don't have to worry about things and I'm feeling comfortable on the mound again."
Martin saw 27 outings, 18 starts. He went 8-9, with a 3.89 ERA. That season proved his last as a pro.
Martin went on to get his Masters in public administration from Harvard, after getting his bachelors from Western Oregon University. In 2022, he heads Perseverance Strategies, a government relations firm in Salem.
- Salem Statesman Journal, June 5, 1987: Angels take McKay's Martin
- Salem Statesman Journal, Aug. 31, 1988: California scouts like McKay grad
- Quad-City Times, May 4, 1991: Glad to be back
Made the Majors:1,342-33.2%
Never Made Majors:2,698-66.8%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors:547
10+ Seasons in the Minors:333
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