Already this year, the Dodgers have had a previous player announced as part of the 2024 Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame class and a player chose into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Presently they have a 2024 inductee into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.
Russell Martin, a double cross All-Star catcher with the Dodgers who played six seasons of his 14-year Major League career with the club, is part of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2024.
“It’s an all consuming purpose achievement,” Martin said. “I’m definitely grateful to be in the company with the other greats that have been around the game of baseball in Canada. Recently respected.”
Martin joins previous teammate Hiroki Kuroda, who was announced as an inductee of the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame on Jan. 18, and Adrián Beltré, announced as an inductee of the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Jan. 23, in baseball immortality.
Martin, brought into the world in East York, Ontario, Canada, assumed control over the Dodgers’ starting catcher job as a 23-year-old youngster in 2006 and was an All-Star, Silver Slugger and Gold Glove Award winner the following season in 2007, becoming the third Dodger catcher to at any point win a Gold Glove Award. He was a double cross All-Star with the Dodgers (also in 2008).
Martin played six seasons with the Dodgers from 2006-2010, returning in 2019 to finish out his 14-year Major League career. Martin’s finest season was 2007 when he hit 19 homers, drove in 87 runs, had 32 doubles and batted .293 with an .843 Operations. It’s one of three seasons all time by a Dodger catcher with at least 15 homers and 30 doubles — the others being Mike Piazza’s 1997 and Roy Campanella’s 1951.
Martin appeared in four Dodger postseason teams (2006, 2008, 2009, 2019). He appeared in four games as an alleviation pitcher in 2019 and didn’t allow a run. Martin is a four-time All-Star in his Major League career and hit 191 grand slams and gathered 1,416 hits.
“It was ideal to return to where everything began,” Martin said on finishing his career with the Dodgers. “I spent many years — all through the Minor Leagues, and then finally getting up to the enormous show, and then 2006 and playing all the way till 2010. LA’s a special place. They love their baseball around there. The organization’s wealthy in history, and it’s simply a great organization. And I was considerably more dazzled with them in 2019 compared to when I left in 2010. They made a ton of progress, and there’s a reason why they’ve been so great.”
Martin is arguably the greatest Canada-conceived catcher in Major League history.
He ranks 6th all time in hits, RBI (771) and doubles (255) and seventh all time in taken bases (101) and grand slams hit by a Canada-conceived player and first in all of those categories as a catcher.
The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Historical center commemorates great players, teams, and accomplishments of baseball in Canada. The Hall of Fame was established in November 1982 and has an annual induction service to perceive those — Canada conceived and others brought into the world beyond the nation — who have added to the advancement of Canadian baseball.
Martin’s induction function will take place June 15.
He will be the 14th inductee who has played, coached or worked in the Dodger organization — including the legendary Jackie Robinson and Tommy Lasorda and National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Pedro Martinez and Gary Carter.
“Not good enough for a small child that experienced childhood in NDG (the Montreal-based youth baseball league) to get all the way to the Hall of Fame in Canada,” Martin said.