Later, Martin told reporters that he was "very confident" that he would be cleared of the misdemeanor charges he faces for allegedly exchanging punches with Shawn Haggerty-Martin, who claims she married the outfielder in Las Vegas two years ago.

Scottsdale police also are investigating Haggerty-Martin's claim that Martin is married to two women. Bigamy is a felony.

Martin, the Padres' recently acquired leadoff hitter and left fielder, was in the starting lineup for this afternoon's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

"I'm a little nervous," Martin said, sitting in general manager Kevin Towers' office. "I'm a little leery about some of the stuff that might happen, but I just want to get through this day before I can even think about anything else. This is the first step of starting to get on with it."

Martin's day began with a half-hour meeting with club president Larry Lucchino and manager Bruce Bochy. He then spoke to his teammates and management.

Martin declined to reveal what he said. Lucchino said Martin spoke "with some emotion."

Lucchino wouldn't say if Martin apologized. "I don't know if I want to get into that," Lucchino said. "He did express concern for the impact of this on his teammates and his new organization."

Martin and Haggerty-Martin were jailed late Monday night, made their initial court appearance the next morning, were released on their own recognizance and told to stay away from each other. The ballplayer had been in seclusion since with his wife, Cathy, ever since.

"I would say that coming here today was probably the most difficult thing I've ever had to do, just facing the fire," Martin said.

"The support was absolutely incredible. I talked to Kevin Towers and he said people were supportive, but I couldn't even imagine what he really meant until I got here. Guys have been absolutely great."

Martin said he was told by his attorney not to discuss specifics of the case.

"Believe me, I wish I could sit here and talk," he said.

Police say Haggerty-Martin began hitting Martin Monday night after they argued about their marital status, and that Martin punched her in the face at least once.

Martin was charged with assault-physical injury and threatening or intimidating. Haggerty-Martin was charged with assault-domestic violence.

Haggerty-Martin said she and Martin were married in Las Vegas on Dec. 11, 1998. Martin told police he recalled being at a ceremony in Vegas, but said he didn't think it was real.

Martin, obtained from the Pittsburgh Pirates on Feb. 23, did speak about having his personal life in the open.

"After 32 years of doing everything exactly right and being thought of as just a pretty decent guy, it's a long fall from glory," he said. "That might be what hurts the most, is that you feel like you let so many people down. You realize that there's nothing really you can do or say that's going to make it better for the world. You just go on with faith in your past and hope that people understand what type of person you are."

Martin is due back in court on April 12 for a pretrial conference.

AP NEWS
The Associated Press News Service

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