V-Mart’s intriguing bat drawing interest

DETROIT — Victor Martinez sat at the podium at Comerica Park two years ago and talked emotionally about what it meant to remain a Tiger. Directly to his left was Tigers owner Mike Ilitch, who talked about a vow to take care of him for what he did in their run to a fourth consecutive division title in 2014. There was sentiment behind the four-year extension they agreed upon, even as Martinez’s age loomed.

It seems further in the past, almost a distant memory. And as the Tigers look to pare payroll at next week’s Winter Meetings, Martinez joins teammates J.D. Martinez, Ian Kinsler, Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera in baseball’s Hot Stove rumor mill.

The Tigers have had some inquiries on Victor Martinez, as Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reported. That in itself isn’t really a surprise, given how many ideas are thrown around in the month or so between baseball’s General Managers Meetings and the Winter Meetings. The question as discussions become more focused is how serious that interest becomes.

• Hot Stove Tracker

That depends in part on the rest of the market.

“Always a place for a good bat,” one Major League evaluator said.

Indeed, as the rumored interest around the league for 39-year-old Carlos …

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