In the spirit of Moneyball, the voice of the Toronto Blue Jays offers cutting insights on baseball
Buck Martinez has been in and around professional baseball for nearly fifty years as a player, manager and broadcaster. Having witnessed enormous change in the game he loves, seeing it morph from a grassroots pastime into a big business, he recognizes that not every change has been for the better. Today’s fans struggle to connect to their on-field heroes as loyalty to club and player wavers, and free agency constantly changes the face of every team’s roster.
In Change Up, Martinez isn’t shy with his opinions and offers his unique insights into how Major League Baseball might reconnect with its fan base, how the clubs might train and prepare their players for their time in “The Show” and how players might approach the sport in a time of sagging interest.
Comparing the style of play and preparation that made the all-time greats he played with—including George Brett, Reggie Jackson and Dave Stieb—the best at their respective positions to how today’s players are managed at all levels, he explains why baseball needs to return to its roots in order to win back its fans.
As the play-by-play announcer for the Blue Jays throughout their incredible run in 2015, Martinez shares his insights into how the Jays became Canada’s team again, more than twenty years after their last World Series win.
Buck Martinez has been in and around professional baseball for nearly 50 years as a player, manager and broadcaster. Currently the play-by-play announcer for the Toronto Blue Jays, where he kept fans on the edge of their seats during the Jays’ incredible playoff runs in 2015 and 2016, Martinez has witnessed enormous change in the game he loves. Not all of the change has been for the better, and today’s fans struggle to connect to their on-the-field heroes as loyalty to club and player wavers and free agency constantly changes the face of every team’s roster.
In Change Up, Martinez delves into how Major League Baseball might reconnect with its fan base, how the clubs might train and prepare their players for their time in “The Show” and how players might approach the sport in a time of declining interest. Martinez isn’t shy with his opinions, whether they concern pitch count, player development through the minor-league system, or even if there should be a minor-league system at all. Always entertaining, ever insightful, Martinez loads the bases and throws inside pitches about summer’s favorite game.
“Buck Martinez brings a unique blend of old school baseball thinking mixed with the new statistical mind which is so prevalent in today’s game. Buck has played, coached, managed and broadcasted the game of baseball through many different eras, his love and knowledge of baseball is second to none.”
