Victor Martinez on knee injury: First thing I thought was 'not again'

Detroit Tigers designated hitter Victor Martinez is confident he'll be ready by Opening Day after undergoing knee surgery last month to repair a torn left meniscus.

He's also vowing to never partake in an offseason workout again.

Martinez, who reported to camp on Monday for the first time this spring, said he injured his knee playing catch with his brother this winter and immediately feared the worst.

"The first thing in my head was, 'not again, not again, not again," Martinez told reporters Tuesday. He joked that he plans on doing nothing next offseason - even if it means reporting to camp 30 pounds overweight.

The Tigers can breathe easy now that Martinez appears on track to re-join the team in early April.  Martinez, who missed the entire 2012 season after tearing his ACL in the same knee during winter workouts, said he needs two weeks of at-bats before he declares himself ready for game action.

Martinez, 36, performed conditioning drills Monday and engaged in light soft-toss Tuesday. The next step in his recovery will be batting practice, which is expected to take place by the middle of March.