WHY HEART DRIVES RUSSELL MARTIN

(photo: Getty)
There isn’t any better way of putting it, Russell Martin is a New York Yankee because of his heart. This guy has been a pleasant surprise and while we wrote about Russell in WHY MARTIN’S A FACTOR, let’s be honest, no one really thought he would explode as well as he did.

The hardest part for Martin when he came to New York was his adjustment from the West coast to the East coast and working with an entirely new pitching staff while trying to adapt to the AL and calling games for the Yankees rotation. CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett were already pretty seasoned and established and know the routines of the Yanks. They may need advice, but for the most part, they have it under control. Although, it has been reported that Burnett absolutely loves Russell Martin and the way he calls a game. Burnett depends on Martin and Rothschild alot so, hey, for Martin, it's good to be wanted. As for the other pitchers, Hughes and Ivan Nova are the sponges, so working and teaching them may be a challenge for Russell, but youth usually absorbs all they can from their catcher. Then you have veterans in Garcia and Bartolo Colon and while they are seasoned pitchers, they are on their comeback tour, so, naturally they wanted to do what they can to thrive with their catcher.

Martin has been able to harness it into a pretty respectful group of pitchers. I’d say, so far, Martin has shined and life is good.

(photo: Getty)

In the batter’s box, Martin started off on fire and continues his assault. He’s been scorching the ball which basically means that the kid is comfortable where he is and confident he can do the job, whatever it may be.

Overall, Brian Cashman has to be hysterical right now...in a good way. Russell Martin may be the diamond in the ruff that the Yankees needed to jump start their 2011 season. I’ve said this a thousand times but it still rings true. Martin’s like Swisher was in 2009, under the radar, just another player and suddenly, his acquisition looks like one of the best moves made in the off-season. If Martin can continue his rampage and stay healthy, look for an All-Star pick by July and a new Yankee fan favorite will emerge, no doubt.

It was hard for me to see another 55 on the New York Yankees after the departure of Hideki Matsui, but I can say with confidence, Martin's his own guy and filling that number's shoes just wonderfully. Thank you Mr. Martin. Keep it up bro.

Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.