Center fielder Tommy Pham had been warming up in the batting cage _ he didn’t get hit himself this time _ as Martinez was coming to bat in the sixth inning. Extra man Greg Garcia, who was with Pham, called the shot.
Martinez, facing the White Sox for the first time in his career, was locked in a 0-0 struggle with rookie Lucas Giolito, a former California high school teammate of Cardinals top prospect Jack Flaherty. With two outs in the inning, Martinez swung hard at the first pitch, as he often does. But with markedly different results, as the ball landed in the left-center-field bleachers 407 feet later.