Jays' Russell Martin emotional in Montreal homecoming
Toronto catcher receives standing ovation, tearful as dad plays anthems
One word can best describe Russell Martin's return to his hometown of Montreal: emotional.
Martin was in town with the Toronto Blue Jays as part of a two-game exhibition against the Cincinnati Reds at Montreal's Olympic Stadium, beginning with Friday night's 2-0 loss.
It started with Martin's father — Russell Martin Sr. — performing both the Canadian and U.S. national anthems on the saxophone that drew tears from the Blue Jays catcher.
Russell Martin, Sr. just killed it on national anthems duty in Montreal. <a href="http://t.co/V2Xypf6J4q">pic.twitter.com/V2Xypf6J4q</a>
—@Kub64Martin then received a standing ovation from the near 50,000 fans in his first at-bat.
.<a href="https://twitter.com/russellmartin55">@russellmartin55</a> received quite the ovation in his first at bat <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BlueJaysMTL?src=hash">#BlueJaysMTL</a> <a href="http://t.co/EyYX00R0T6">pic.twitter.com/EyYX00R0T6</a>
—@BlueJaysHe also got another loud roar after he was taken out of the game by Blue Jays manager John Gibbons.
Martin signed a 82-million contract with the Blue Jays last November. But he's all for baseball returning to native Montreal.
"I don't know if it's possible but if so, it would be fantastic," he said. "The crowd that came last year and the one they're supposed to get this year shows that there are people who want to see baseball."
With files from The Canadian Press