ORONO – University of Maryland left fielder Zach Martin’s first hit last season was a run-scoring single in the eighth inning of a 25-10 victory over the University of Maine.
But that was just one of the 11 games he would appear in after playing in 18 games as a freshman.
So Martin entered the NCAA transfer portal and now he is playing for UMaine. He was the Black Bears’ leading hitter entering Wednesday’s non-conference game at the University of Connecticut.
Martin, a junior, was hitting .333 and was also leading the Black Bears in doubles (8), on-base percentage (.495) and being hit by pitch (9). He was second in slugging percentage (.500) and walks (18), third in hits (28) and fourth in runs batted in (16).
He also had two homers and scored 13 runs.
He hit safely in 17 of UMaine’s 26 games including seven multi-hit games.
Martin has been the starting right fielder and hits either fourth or fifth in the lineup.
“He’s a good baseball player,” said UMaine head coach Nick Derba. “He puts in quality at-bats, he has given us some depth in the lineup.
“I’m looking forward to seeing him continue to move forward,” added Derba. “He is a reliable stick and is a big part of our offense.”
Derba said Martin hasn’t hit for much power yet “but I know that will come. Like anything else, it comes in bunches.”
UMaine junior first baseman Jeremiah Jenkins is impressed with Martin.
“He is a good all-around hitter,” said Jenkins. “He hits to all fields, he’s a good two-strike hitter, he takes the ball up the middle and he can also hit to the pull side.”
Martin said he has always sprayed the ball around.
“I hit it where it’s pitched. I’ve become a little more pull-happy in college but I’m going to stick to my opposite-field gap because that’s where I’ve been successful in the past,” said the left handed-hitting Martin.
The 6-foot, 185-pound Martin is a native of Frederick, Maryland and played travel baseball with UMaine junior pitcher Colin Fitzgerald.
So he was familiar with the UMaine program when he entered the transfer portal.
Derba knew Fitzgerald and Martin were friends and he said the state of Maryland had a good reputation when it came to producing quality hitters.
“I watched him on video and realized he would fit the bill for us,” said Derba.
Martin also thought it was a good fit.
“I spoke with coach Derba and fell in love with the coaching staff and the culture. I had a good relationship with Colin Fitzgerald before that and I heard nothing but great things about what this program was doing.
“I knew by playing my game, I could help this team win another championship,” said Martin.
UMaine is the defending America East champion.
Martin thoroughly enjoys his teammates and he has adapted to the colder weather.
“New England is actually pretty nice,” he said.
He has been happy with his season to date.
“But there is still a lot more in the tank,” said Martin. “Coach Derba and I discuss each week how things are going. Strengths, weaknesses, things I can improve on as a hitter.
“It has helped me along the way adapt to different pitches and different pitchers,” he said.
He tries to force pitchers into “fastball counts” so he can take his “best swings” and tee off on them.
“We have hitting charts in the dugouts which tell us about pitchers’ tendencies and what they like to throw in each count,” said Martin. “That has been a huge help in my success recently.”
UMaine sophomore pitcher Gianni Gambardella said Martin has been a “huge pickup for us.”
The Black Bears took an overall record of 7-19 into the UConn game.
They are 3-5 in the conference and will visit UMass Lowell for three conference games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Three of their conference losses have been by one run and they had late-inning one-run leads in all three, a pair of extra-inning 5-4 setbacks to league leader Bryant, and a 6-5 loss to the New Jersey Institute of Technology in the other last Sunday.
They also dropped a 9-7 decision at Albany in which they squandered a 6-2 lead.
Martin said he hopes to “contribute as much as I can to bring the Black Bears some more wins.”
And he is upbeat about the future.
“We’re on the right path. We have it in us. We have a very talented group and, hopefully, we can snag another America East title,” Martin said.