After he was un-able to get his Major League career off to a good start in Houston, outfielder J.D. Martinez signed with the Tigers, and has since taken off.

After posting a slash line of .315/.358/.553 in 2014 with 23 home runs and 76 runs batted, Martinez had himself a career year in 2015, slashing .282/.344/.535 with 38 home runs hit and 102 runs batted in. This is part of the reason why the Tigers want to give Martinez a long-term extension, according to Michigan Live:

The Detroit Tigers and outfielder J.D. Martinez continue to talk about a long-term deal.

Both sides say they still want to get something done.

“It’s definitely something we’re still talking about,” Martinez said. “It’s something I think both sides are still interested in. We haven’t come to something where we both feel comfortable yet.

“I love this team. I want to be part of this team. I would love to be a Tiger for life. We’ve just got to see how it goes.”

Martinez is going to be big for the Tigers this year if they want to get back into contention. If the Tigers and Martinez are un-able to reach a deal, Martinez will be under team control for one more year until he hits the free agent market. By the looks of these talks, however, it seems likely to me that Martinez and the Tigers get something done.

[twitter-follow screen_name='tony_montalto' show_count='yes']