Injured Russell Martin Gets $4 Million from Yankees

Russell Martin may need knee surgery, but the New York Yankees signed him to a one-year, $4 million deal anyway.

Yes, the 27-year-old catcher has a bum knee, but somehow managed to pass his team physical and end up with a job and $4 million. Luckily for both parties involved, the surgery is minor enough that he'll be ready to roll by Spring Training after going under the knife this Monday.

Not only is Martin coming off a major hip surgery, he's dealing with the disappointment of enduring two crappy seasons in a row. Between 2009-10 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, he hit a total of 12 home runs and 79 RBI over 240 games with a .250 batting average.

General manager Brian Cashman had this to say regarding the signing:

He was one of the premier catchers in the game not too long ago. From performance and injuries the last two years, he's slipped from that status, but we feel he's a low-risk, high reward scenario.

Speaking of Martin's "status," what does this signing say about Francisco Cervelli, Jesus Montero and Austin Romine? Apparently they're not ready to eventually replace the aging Jorge Posada like the club had hoped. In fact, all three of them are probably devastated by the news. Poor guys.

This deal comes on the heels of Mark Prior's new minor league deal with the Bronx Bombers. They're seriously on a roll.

[Associated Press]