Tigers' Martin excited to face Mariners, Hernandez (May 18, 2018)
Leonys Martin would like nothing more than to see his name penciled into the lineup in center field and lead off against former teammate Felix Hernandez.
"Everything's going good," Martin, who's eligible to come off the 10-day disabled list Friday, told MLB.com. "That's the plan."
The Detroit Tigers outfielder then paused and laughed.
"I'm not the manager," he said.
Whether Martin returns Friday night in Seattle is up to Ron Gardenhire and the Tigers' training staff.
Martin tested his injured hamstring before Thursday's series opener at Safeco Field and is scheduled to be put through a more strenuous workout Friday.
"He thinks he's ready right now," Gardenhire said. "We still haven't seen him run the bases, so we are going to put him on the bases (Friday) ... and see if he can explode, because that's the part where he has the biggest problem, it's the initial takeoff.
"We want to see him do that before we activate him. ... But he's pretty adamant that he's ready to go."
Martin strained his left hamstring May 7. He said all went well when he ran before batting practice Thursday.
"I took an aggressive jump, to simulate a game, and it felt normal," Martin said. "No pain."
Martin played 143 games for the Mariners in 2016, hitting .247 with a career-high 15 home runs and 46 RBIs.
But after an abysmal start last April, he was designated for assignment. He spent most of last season in Triple-A Tacoma before being dealt to the Chicago Cubs on Aug. 31. He signed a one-year deal worth $1.75 million with the Tigers in the offseason.
Martin, 30, has been one of the bright spots for Detroit in the first few weeks of the season, batting .294 with five homers and 15 RBIs.
He hopes to face longtime Mariners right-hander Hernandez (5-3, 5.66 ERA), who is 10-4 with a 3.09 ERA in 17 career starts against Detroit.
The Tigers are scheduled to counter with right-hander Michael Fulmer (1-3, 4.37 ERA), who is 0-2 with a 5.17 ERA in three starts against Seattle.
With Robinson Cano serving an 80-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball policy against performance-enhancing drugs, the Mariners are expected to start Dee Gordon at second base Friday.
Gordon, who won a Gold Glove at second while with the Miami Marlins in 2015, was acquired in the offseason and converted into a center fielder. But with Cano out until mid-August, the Mariners decided to move Gordon back to the infield. He has taken ground balls there during batting practice each of the past three days.
"It's just a few little things I need to get cleaned up," Gordon said. "I hadn't taken a ground ball since December. I'm not going to be perfect out there. Like I said when I went to center, I'm trying to learn a position in the big leagues. Now, I'm going back to another position in the big leagues. But I'll take care of it and try to help us win ballgames."
As for Cano, the Tigers' Martin came to his defense Thursday. He said he has talked with his former teammate and believes Cano took a diuretic prescribed by a doctor in the Dominican Republic and wasn't trying to mask PED use.
"We are really good friends," Martin told MLB.com. "He's having a hard time right now. It's not an easy process. As a friend, I don't believe it. I know Robbie, and he's not the type of guy to disrespect the game. He doesn't need that. He's got no reason to do that. ... He's the type of guy who's (close) to Cooperstown."
