Law had Martin as his No. 1 prospect; meanwhile, Baseball America and MLB Pipeline had him at No. 2. Baseball America considered the Jacksonville, Fla., native a favourite to be drafted first. ?Martin has some of the best pure hitting ability in the class, with eye-popping bat speed, excellent contact ability and impressive plate discipline as well,? Baseball America wrote. MLB Pipeline called Martin the ?best pure hitter? in the draft, someone who makes consistent hard contact from the right side. His power might end up being average, MLB Pipeline noted, and Law wrote he can ?hit for average with developing power.?
[...]
In 140 games over three seasons at Vanderbilt, including a junior year truncated due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Martin hit .368/.474/.532 with only 82 strikeouts.
?He?s a well-above-average hitter,? Farrell said. ?This is a guy that manages the strike zone really well. Extremely high contact rates. Somebody we think has the ability to grow into more power down the road, but just really good bat-to-ball skills and ability to manage the strike zone.?
On defence, Martin has played all over the field. MLB Pipeline noted he has the quick feet, soft hands and arm to handle nearly any position. During his freshman season at Vanderbilt, his 58 starts were at six positions. The following season, he primarily played second and third base. This spring, he transitioned to centre field, which Law indicated might have been due to an issue with his throwing that could have been linked to an injury.
