Indians utility infielder throws scoreless 9th inning as teammates laugh and cheer
At age 34, Cleveland Indians utility infielder Michael Martinez made his first career pitching appearance during mop-up work in the ninth inning of Thursday's 10-4 loss to the Chicago White Sox and he did it in style: with a scoreless frame.
The Indians bullpen picked up a lot of work when starter Josh Tomlin got lifted in the second inning after the White Sox shelled him for seven runs, so Martinez helped take a load off. What to expect of a guy throwing 80 miles-per-hour meatballs in his first ever MLB pitching appearance? Not a whole lot, judging from the Indians players cracking up and cheering while Martinez himself couldn't help but crack a smile.
Here are the three outs Martinez recorded, in order (he did allow a line drive double to Leury Garcia):
https://gfycat.com/MinorSafeBumblebee
Out number two:
https://gfycat.com/RightImportantCondor
Out number three:
https://gfycat.com/BeautifulHealthyBilby
He's a utility man who really knows his role, telling MLB.com's Jordan Bastian, "That's why I'm here. I'm here to help out whenever they need me" Martinez said. "I play almost every single position, so I try to get in and help whenever I can."
A job well done by Martinez, who will probably come away from the experience with a slightly new perspective of pitching. Said Ichiro, while laughing after his first outing -- on the final day of the 2015 season, "I can’t say it was fun, but I’ll never talk bad about a pitcher again."
