He wasn't the man in the middle.

Victor Martinez's left knee is steadily improving, but not that much.

He is agile enough, however — and felt good enough on his second visit to see his teammates — to have been on the catching end of a rundown game featuring Prince Fielder's two young sons in the clubhouse Tuesday.

Nothing strenuous, mind you.

Nothing that could lead to a wrong step.

But with his music blaring from his locker, and Martinez having some fun, it was easy to see he's come a long way in his recovery from knee surgery.