About Russell Martin (baseball)
Russell Nathan Coltrane Jeanson Martin Jr. (born February 15, 1983) is a Canadian former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Toronto Blue Jays, and is a four-time MLB All-Star. In 2007, Martin won the Gold Glove Award and Silver Slugger Award. Martin became the everyday catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers immediately upon his MLB debut in 2006, and continued in that role for nearly five years. His offensive and defensive performance earned wide accolades during his first three years, but they diminished significantly in 2009 and 2010. Martin spent the last two months of 2010 on the disabled list. After the Dodgers declined to offer him arbitration in 2011, he signed with the Yankees and succeeded Jorge Posada as the Yankees' everyday catcher. In November 2012, Martin signed a two-year free agent contract with the Pirates, and took over the team's everyday catcher duties. Following the 2014 season, he signed a five-year, $82 million contract with the Blue Jays. In January 2019, he was traded back to the Dodgers. Drafted as a third baseman, Martin played his first professional season with the Gulf Coast Dodgers, and hit.286 with 10 RBI in 41 games.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.