Riding 'cue,' Martinez remains red-hot at plate

BOSTON -- J.D. Martinez is in a stretch where he is getting on base every game, and also rounding the bases for a home run in many of them.
The slugger continued his recent tear with a two-run rocket to center that gave his team an early three-run lead en route to a 6-4 victory over the Athletics on Wednesday night at Fenway Park.
Martinez's 12th homer of the season came with one out in the bottom of the first, landing off the back wall in center where the Green Monster intersects with the bleachers.
A shot like that from Martinez has been par for the course of late. Martinez has reached base a career-high 21 consecutive games, slashing .397/.466/.731 over that stretch. He has homers in three of his last four games, and seven of his last 14.
"I mean, I have a cue that I'm riding right now, so I'm kind of just riding that out right now and it kind of seems to be working," Martinez said.
That's a bit of an understatement. Martinez is on fire.
"That's special," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora.
"Keep it going," said Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts. "I always tell [Eduardo Nunez] that I have to be ready. Normally I'm a guy that gets to the on-deck circle a little bit later. With J.D., I have to get there early, because he swings at the first pitch and gets a hit. I have to be there earlier and get my stuff going so I can hit. There was a streak [where] he was just swinging at the first pitch and getting hits and bombs. It's pretty amazing."
Martinez's home run was on an 2-1, 85.3-mph changeup by Athletics right-hander Trevor Cahill, leaving Martinez's bat with an exit velocity of 106.4 mph and a projected distance of 422 feet, according to Statcast™.
Clearly, Martinez is thriving at Fenway Park, even if he isn't a pull hitter.
The right-handed hitter has a line of .371/.410/.714 at home with six homers and 20 RBIs.
"I've always kind of liked it," Martinez said of Fenway. "I wish right field was a little closer, but that's part of it. Like I said at the beginning when everybody asked me about the Green Monster and what am I going to do with the wall. I'm going to do me. I'm not going to worry about that wall. That's a trap, I feel like."