By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak

COMERICA PARK (CBS DETROIT) - The Detroit Tigers wanted Victor Martinez to stay in Detroit, and the man whom fans affectionately call "V-Mart" also wanted to stay in Detroit.

While general manager Dave Dombrowski did not know for sure the Tigers would be able to keep Martinez, one of the most highly regarded free agents this season, he knew they had a good shot. The team made it happen, reportedly giving the 35-year-old Martinez $68 million for a four-year deal.

Dombrowski said Friday that Martinez sought him out in the clubhouse late this summer and asked to speak to him privately. The designated hitter, in the midst of a phenomenal season, wanted to make sure Dombrowski knew where he stood.

"He says, 'I've never done anything like this before, and maybe I'm not supposed to do this because my agents may not like this,' but he said, 'I want you to know how much I want to be a Detroit Tiger,'" Dombrowski recounted. "'I don't want to go anywhere after this contract. This is like my home, like my family, and my family feels the same way, and I want to be a Detroit Tiger.'

"I said, 'Victor, I really appreciate that. We feel the same way about you,'" Dombrowski said. "It wasn't the right time to negotiate a contract at that time for us, which I explained to him, because we've got other free agents that we really want to be focused on what took place on the field, but he came and he grabbed me and had that conversation on his own, just to tell you how much he wanted to be here."

Owner Mike Ilitch spoke at Martinez's press conference Friday and raved about the player's plate discipline. Wowed by the season Martinez put together - arguably the best of his All-Star career - Ilitch said he promised Martinez after the Tigers won the American League Central Division that he would pay to keep him in Detroit.

"I put my arm around him," Ilitch said. "I said, 'Victor, you had a fantastic year, you played great ... good sportsmanship, never seem to lose your cool ... I'm going to take care of you next year.'"

Indeed he did, and if the Tigers wanted to spend big on someone, it made decent sense to spend big on Martinez, whom Dombrowski said other teams have rated as the best hitter in major league baseball. Even though Martinez will be 36 at the start of next season, the Tigers believe he will continue to perform.

"I think you take a risk any time you sign a player to a long-term contract," Dombrowski said. "In this situation, I think you're talking about a very unusual hitter, a premier hitter, one of the best hitters in recent time frames. You can see he continues to really execute at a prime hitter, and you look at a lot of the great hitters ... when you look at the Red Sox, who do you fear more than anybody in their lineup right now? Well, it's David Ortiz, and he's 39 years old, and so we think Victor will continue to hit."

Dombrowski said Martinez flew in from Venezuela to sign his contract Friday.

Martinez terrorized opposing pitchers in 2014. He recorded a batting average of .335, nearly winning the American League batting title. He turned in the best on-base percentage of his career (.409) thanks to 70 walks, another category in which he came close to his career high.

Between the walks, his 188 hits and a career-high 32 home runs, Martinez also recorded an on-base plus slugging percentage of .974, the best in the American League. A five-time All-Star, Martinez has demonstrated fantastic plate discipline throughout his career, and last season was no exception. Martinez struck out just 42 times in 641 plate appearances.

The Tigers tweeted a photo of Martinez signing his contract shortly before the press conference began.

Martinez has been with Detroit since 2011. The Tigers won the American League Central Division that year and have done so every year since then.