given until January 5 in order to complete a drug treatment program). New York Mets Martin was released early from prison on February 23, , however, Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn subsequently suspended all four players for the entire season. The suspensions were reduced after appeal, and the four were allowed to return to their teams on May 15. By then, Martin had signed with the New York Mets. Martin joined the Mets on May 16 in San Francisco. Through 51 games with the Mets, Martin managed just a .154 batting average, three home runs and five RBIs, and was released on September 30. A bid for a comeback in found no takers, so he retired. Martin took a coaching job in the Phillies' minor league system shortly after his retirement. He spent the first six weeks of the season as interim first base coach for the eventual World Champion Phillies while Davey Lopes was undergoing treatment for prostate cancer. Martin most recently served as hitting coach for the Detroit Tigers' double A affiliate, the Erie SeaWolves, in and . Tommy John called Martin "a strong defensive outfielder." He is the son of Barney Martin, who pitched in a single game for the Cincinnati Reds in . See also List of second-generation Major League Baseball players References External links Jerry Martin at Baseball Almanac Jerry Martin at Pura Pelota (Venezuelan Professional Baseball League) 1949 births Living people Águilas del Zulia players American people convicted of drug offenses Baseball players from Columbia, South Carolina Chicago Cubs players Fort Myers Sun Sox players Furman Paladins baseball players Furman Paladins men's basketball players Kansas City Royals players Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players suspended for drug offenses Minor league baseball managers Navegantes del Magallanes players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela New York Mets players Orlando Juice players Philadelphia Phillies players Pulaski Phillies players Reading Phillies players San Francisco Giants players Spartanburg Phillies players Tidewater Tides players Toledo Mud Hens players St. Petersburg Pelicans players Spartanburg Methodist Pioneers baseball players