An Angel for all positions Whatever position he plays for the Quad-City Angels, Ray Martinez always seems s to be in the right spot. Martinez, a regular in the Angels' lineup, has made a niche for himself as one of the top utility infielders in the Midwest League. The bulk of his playing time has been at third base but Martinez has also manned first, second and shortstop while Martinez playing in 67 games for the Quad-Cities this year. "It gives me a chance to play and to play a lot of different positions and it's something different nearly every night. From that standpoint, I like it," Martinez said. Martinez played shortstop before being drafted after high school. "That's where I played throughout high school but this has been a good experience for me," Martinez said. "Later on in my career, this could help because when someone is looking for an infielder at any position, I can play it." The approach to the game, he said, is the same at any of his positions. "I just have to try to stay down on the ground balls and keep working hard every day," Martinez said. Quad-Cities Manager Don Long has helped Martinez keep his attention focused. "He doesn't let us slack off and he wants everything done the way it should be done. That's kept us working hard on improving as players," Martinez said. Martinez, 21, was California's seventh round pick in the June, 1987, free agent draft after completing his prep career at Franklin High School in Highland Park, Calif. He spent 1987 and 1988 with California's short season Class A team in the Northwest League and batted .192 in 103 games at Palm Springs in the California League last summer. "I've changed my attitude at the plate. Last year, I was swinging for the fences but I don't have to do that. Now, I just want to hit the ball hard and hit line drives," said Martinez, who is hitting .230 this season for the Quad-Cities. "I've been striking out a little too much. I don't strike out swinging, I usually strike out looking and I'm working now to cut down on those." Still, Martinez' on-base percentage of .345 is third among Quad-Cities players, behind only Reggie Williams and Chad Curtis. *Whatever I can do to help the team is what I want to get out of the rest of this season," said Martinez, who has helped the Angels get off to a fast start in the second half of the Midwest League season. Martinez expects the Quad-Cities to stay in the thick of the second half Southern Division pennant race and he said that Long's advice has probably helped the Angels. *All year and even when we were losing, he was telling us that if we kept working hard and playing together that things would fall into place. They have and we don't want it to end," Martinez said.
