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J.D. Martinez' Return Will Stoke Tigers' Red-Hot Offense

By Will Burchfield
Twitter: burchie_kid

As if their offense could get any hotter at the moment, the Tigers will activate J.D. Martinez for tonight's game against the White Sox.

The power-hitting rightfielder has been out since June 17 after fracturing his right elbow.

Despite the breadth of Martinez' production, the Tigers hardly stumbled in his absence. They have averaged 4.94 runs per game since he landed on the D.L., a small increase over their season-long average of 4.85. And they've simply caught fire of late, racking up 52 runs in the past six games.

Martinez, who clubbed 38 home runs last year, will be a shot in the arm for an offense with bulging veins.

He figures to slide into his customary five-spot in the batting order, between Victor Martinez and Nick Castellanos. Though it will likely take him time to find his groove, J.D.'s return makes a deep lineup even deeper. From Ian Kinsler to Castellanos, few teams in the league can match the Tigers' top six hitters.

During Martinez' absence, Brad Ausmus often spoke of the way the offense had a more difficult time overcoming the slumps of various hitters.

"A lot of times when a couple bats are struggling, a bat like J.D. can cover for them," he said.

That's hardly been an issue lately, of course, but Ausmus' point remains the same: with Martinez in the lineup, the offense is that much more difficult to subdue. Just when opposing pitchers pause to catch their breath, Ian Kinsler is digging back into the box and the heart of the order is looming behind him.

Martinez' return feels particularly significant given his success in 2015. The then-27-year-old enjoyed the best season of his career, slashing .282/.344/.535 with 38 bombs and 102 RBI. And he was off to a strong start in 2016, on pace for about 30 home runs and 100 RBI at the time of his injury.

It was the promise of Martinez' return, in part, that led Al Avila to stand pat at the trade deadline. And the Tigers were unanimously on board with the G.M.'s approach – none more so than Justin Verlander.

"I see what Mr. Avila's been saying and I completely agree with him," Verlander said last Friday. "We got one of the best hitters in the game coming off the D.L. here soon. That's a big acquisition in and of itself."

On top of Martinez, the Tigers will by buoyed by the comeback of Jordan Zimmermann, who is scheduled to start on Thursday. They also activated Daniel Norris on Tuesday and optioned him to Triple-A Toledo.

Still, despite the team's sudden influx of depth, Ausmus was quick to point out that getting Martinez, Zimmermann and Norris back on the field is only half the battle.

"All these guys have to play well. It's not like you just get people back and it's roses. We gotta go out there and and play well and beat the other team," the manager said.

It's still unclear whether Martinez will D.H. or play in the field upon his return. It's likely he does a little bit of both at first. He started in right field in the final two games of his rehab assignment with the Mud Hens and Ausmus said he's been throwing comfortably on a daily basis.

But it's his bat that can add the most to the big-league team, even if the Tigers hardly need it at the moment. With the offense crackling, it's yet another log on the fire.

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