| | PEORIA, Ariz. -- Back in a San Diego Padres uniform, Al
Martin watched as Jay Bell's home run sailed over his head in left
field. At the plate a few minutes later, Martin stroked a leadoff
single to right.
Being out on the field might have been the easiest part of the
day for Martin.
|  | | Al Martin, talking with reporters Thursday, didn't divulge the details of his marital status. |
Earlier Thursday, he stood before his teammates and, in what was
described as a heartfelt, emotional address, apologized for the
impact that his arrest Monday night in a bizarre domestic violence
case had on the organization.
When last seen in public on Tuesday morning, Martin was making a
court appearance. He was handcuffed, barefoot and wearing a shirt
that had been torn and speckled with blood when he allegedly
exchanged punches with Shawn Haggerty-Martin, who says the two were
married in Las Vegas in 1998, and that Martin is a bigamist.
"I'm a little nervous," Martin said before Thursday's game
against the Arizona Diamondbacks. "I'm a little leery about some
of the stuff that might happen, but I just want to get through this
day before I can even think about anything else. This is the first
step of starting to get on with it."
Martin, obtained a month ago from Pittsburgh, received polite
applause when his name was announced in the starting lineup, and
again before his first at-bat. A few fans booed, and someone in
left field heckled him about his wife. He doubled in the third
inning but was erased in a rundown.
Martin said he was "very confident" that he would be cleared
of the misdemeanor charges of assault-physical injury and
threatening or intimidating. Haggerty-Martin also spent Monday
night in jail and was charged with assault-domestic violence.
Scottsdale police also are investigating Haggerty-Martin's claim
that Martin is married to two women. Bigamy is a felony.
Martin started his day with a half-hour meeting with club
president Larry Lucchino and manager Bruce Bochy. He then spoke to
his teammates and management.
Martin declined to reveal what he said.
"It was pretty good. There's nothing else I could say,"
catcher Carlos Hernandez said. "We'll give him the best support we
can. Everyone makes mistakes. We're a family. What happens to him
happens to us, too."
Lucchino said Martin spoke "with some emotion."
Martin had been in seclusion with his wife, Cathy, since being
released from jail and making his first court appearance Tuesday
morning.
"I would say that coming here today was probably the most
difficult thing I've ever had to do, just facing the fire," Martin
said.
"The support was absolutely incredible. I talked to Kevin
Towers and he said people were supportive, but I couldn't even
imagine what he really meant until I got here. Guys have been
absolutely great."
Martin said he was told by his attorney not to discuss specifics
of the case.
"Believe me, I wish I could sit here and talk," he said.
Police say Haggerty-Martin began hitting Martin on Monday night
after they argued about their marital status, and that Martin
punched her in the face at least once.
Haggerty-Martin said she and Martin were married in Las Vegas on
Dec. 11, 1998. Martin told police he recalled being at a ceremony
in Vegas, but said he didn't think it was real.
Clark County records show that a Shawn M. Haggerty married an
Albert C. Martin in Las Vegas on Dec. 11, 1998. Haggerty-Martin's
middle name is listed as Michelle, but Martin's is listed as Lee.
According to the police report, Haggerty-Martin started Monday
night's fight because she was "sick and tired" of Martin not
divorcing his other wife.
Martin, obtained from the Pittsburgh Pirates on Feb. 23, did
speak about having his personal life in the open.
"After 32 years of doing everything exactly right and being
thought of as just a pretty decent guy, it's a long fall from
glory," he said. "That might be what hurts the most, is that you
feel like you let so many people down. You realize that there's
nothing really you can do or say that's going to make it better for
the world. You just go on with faith in your past and hope that
people understand what type of person you are."
Martin is due back in court on April 12 for a pretrial
conference.
Before trading for Martin, the Padres asked the Pirates about
his personality and clubhouse presence, Lucchino said.
"Obviously we didn't get into his personal, family life. But
that was not something that anyone was aware of. He graded out
extremely well in the personality-character side." | |
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