CHICAGO — Having played in the postseason and won a championship with four different teams, J.D. Martinez brings a perspective to the Mets clubhouse that few others can relate to.
The No. 1 rule for Martinez, especially at this stage in the season, is to block out the outside noise.
“Guys tend to get hung up on looking at the standings,” Martinez said before Saturday's game against the Mets and White Sox. “What I preach is, let the media and the fans look at the standings. Let's just focus on ourselves and let whatever happens happen.”
The 37-year-old Martinez's resume includes postseason appearances with the Tigers, Diamondbacks, Red Sox and Dodgers.
The highlight was winning the World Series with the Red Sox in 2018.
Now he's helping make that dream a reality for the Mets this season.
Despite a solid road trip coming into Saturday's game, winning five of eight games, the Mets were three lengths behind Atlanta for the National League's third wild card spot.
“Looking at the standings, [it] “Just by looking at the rankings, [it] “It's not going to make us play better. We're going to play better if we play free, don't put pressure on ourselves and just have fun.”
Martinez's recent improved performance has been a welcome relief for a lineup that has been driven primarily by Francisco Lindor and Mark Vientos in the second half of the season.
Martinez hit a two-run homer in a 5-1 win over the White Sox on Friday and is now 8-for-20 (.400) through the first five games of the season.
Martinez is batting .256/.337/.448 with 16 home runs and 65 RBIs this season.
The Mets suffered heartbreaking losses on Sunday and Wednesday.
In both cases, Edwin Diaz gave up a home run late in the game to end the game in defeat.
Although losses like these are demoralizing, Martinez said part of his job as a veteran is to remind his teammates that the sky isn't falling.
“It's something we have to remind our players: 'Who cares if we lost?'” Martinez said. “We wanted to win, we tried our best, and we lost. That's how it goes. We'll lose again. We'll probably lose again after that. That's part of the game.”
Entering Saturday's games, the Mets had a 19.9 percent chance of making the postseason, according to Fangraphs.
One factor is the tough schedule the Mets face for much of September, including a seven-game series against the Phillies, who lead the National League East.
The Mets will also be playing a very important three-game series in Atlanta in the final week of the regular season.
If there's any consistency in Martinez's message, it's that the Mets have been underdogs all season.
“I told them over and over again, 'Guys, we weren't supposed to be here.' This story comes up a lot, but at the beginning of the year, nobody thought we'd be close to the playoffs. Now we're right in the middle of it.”
