Pedro Martinez
A skinny kid from the Dominican Republic, Pedro Martinez emerged from the shadow of his big brother Ramon, also a pitcher in the major leagues, to become the best pitcher in baseball in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In his fifth major league start, on April 13, 1994, Martinez took a perfect game into the 8th inning and lost a no-hitter in the 9th. In the 1999 American League Division Series against Cleveland, nursing a sore back, Martinez came in from the bullpen to pitch six no-hit innings and lead Boston to a victory in Game Five. The right-hander won three Cy Young Awards and four ERA titles before the age of 31.
| Career Batting Stats |
| G |
AB |
H |
R |
HR |
RBI |
SB |
AVG |
SLG |
OBP |
OPS |
OPS+ |
| 468 |
420 |
42 |
22 |
0 |
17 |
0 |
.100 |
.124 |
.134 |
.258 |
34.3 |
|
Where does Pedro Martinez rank among baseball greats?
Pedro Martinez ranks #4 among the Top 50 all-time at SP. Rankings ⇒
Best Season: 1999
In a league that averaged 5.07 earned runs per game, Pedro Martinez was stingly — spinning a 2.07 ERA. He won the triple crown (23 wins, 313 K's, ERA title), walking just 37 batters and surrendering only nine homers in more than 213 innings. In consecutive starts in May, he fanned 15 batters in each game. Thirteen times he fanned at least 10 batters, and he carried a no-hitter into the 7th inning or later three times. In the All-Star Game at Fenway Park, Martinez was named MVP after he pitched two hitless innings and struck out five of the six batters he faced. At Yankee Stadium in September, Pedro set a record by striking out 17 New York batters, winning 3-1 on a one-hitter. The lanky right-hander won his second Cy Young Award and was second in MVP voting to Ivan Rodriguez. In the playoffs, he allowed five hits in 17 innings, fanning 31, while allowing no runs, despite a sore back.
Factoids
Pedro Martinez finished second in Cy Young voting in both 1998 (to Roger Clemens) and 2002 (behind Barry Zito).
On June 30, 1997, Canada's two major league teams met in the regular season for the first time. Pedro Martinez grabbed the spotlight for the Montreal Expos, firing a three-hit, 3-1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
On April 17, 2006, Pedro Martinez notched his 200th career victory and became just the second pitcher to win that milestone game while a member of the New York Mets. The first was Orel Hershiser.
Pitchers Who Struck Out the Side on Nine Pitches in the First Inning
Sandy Koufax, June 30, 1962
Pedro Martinez, May 18, 2002
Rick Helling, June 20, 2006
Source: Trent McCotter
Description
Pedro is thin, wiry even, with long hands and spindly arms. He almost looks like a punk, with his permed hair (at times) and cheesy thin mustache. But beneath that tiny frame beats the heart of an intense competitor and his right arm is a gift from God.
Where He Played
Starting pitcher: the only season he was used primarily as a reliever was in LA in 1993 (63 relief appearances, two saves).
Born
Pedro Jaime Martinez was born on October 25, 1971, in Manoguayabo
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
College: Ohio Dominican
Major League Debut
9 24,
Nine Other Players Who Debuted in 1992
Jeff Kent
Mike Piazza
Bret Boone
Eric Young
Tim Salmon
Pedro Martinez
J.T. Snow
Javy Lopez
Dan Wilson
Uniform Numbers
#45 (1992-2004), #37 (1994 Expos)
Similar Players
Satchel Paige
Related Players
His brother Ramon Martinez won 135 games for the Dodgers, Red Sox and Pirates, from 1988-2001... When Martinez won his first Cy Young Award, in 1997, he dedicated it to Hall of Fame Dominican-native Juan Marichal... When he was traded to the Red Sox prior to the 1998 season, he replaced the departed Roger Clemens as ace of the Boston staff. Later, the two had several post-season duels.
Post-Season Appearances
1998 American League Divisional Series
2004 World Series
Post-Season Notes
Martinez owns a career 6-2 record with a 3.40 ERA in the post-season, with 80 strikeouts in 79 1/3 innings. In the Fall Classic, the right-hander has a 1-0 mark with seven shutout innings in his only appearance.
Awards and Honors
1997 NL Cy Young
1999 ML AS MVP
1999 AL Cy Young
1999 AL Triple Crown
2000 AL Cy Young
Feats
In 1999, Martinez captured the pitching Triple Crown, leading the AL in wins (23), strikeouts (313), and ERA (2.07)... Six times, Martinez has posted an ERA under 2.50 runs per game (1997, 1999-2003)... In 1993, Pedro relieved his brother Ramon while with the Dodgers, marking the first time a brother had relieved his brother since Rick and Mickey Mahler did it for the Braves in 1979... On June 3, 1995, Martinez pitched a perfect nine innings against the Padres in San Diego, but lost his perfect game in the 10th inning when Bip Roberts led off with a two-bagger... Martinez joins Ferguson Jenkins, Gaylord Perry, Randy Johnson, and Roger Clemens as the only pitchers to win the Cy Young Award in both leagues.
Notes
Won his 200th game on April 17, 2006, defeating the Braves, 4-3. He pitched into the seventh inning, and the game was saved by Billy Wagner.
Transactions
Signed as a non-drafted free agent by Los Angeles Dodgers (June 18, 1988); Traded by Los Angeles Dodgers to Montreal Expos in exchange for Delino DeShields (November 19, 1993); Traded by Montreal Expos to Boston Red Sox in exchange for Carl Pavano and a player to be named later (November 18, 1997) - Montreal received Tony Armas Jr. (December 18, 1997); signed as a free agent by the New York Mets in December of 2004.
All-Star Selections
1996 NL
1997 NL
1998 AL
1999 AL
2000 AL
2002 AL
2005 NL
Replaced
When Pedro earned his first job in a starting rotation (1994 Expos), he effectively replaced veteran Dennis Martinez, who had left for Cleveland. In spring training of 1995, the Expos dealt Ken Hill to St. Louis, which really cleared the way for Pedro as the ace of the staff.
Replaced By
To be determined.
Best Strength as a Player
Control. In his prime, Martinez darted his 95+ fastball like a BB at the hitters' knees consistently, which made him very difficult. He is also adept at utilizing several different arm angles.
Largest Weakness as a Player
Durability. Martinez thin frame means he rarely goes beyond 100 pitches with effectiveness. He's basically a 7-8 inning pitcher, and has thrown more than 220 innings just twice in his career. Through 2004, Pedro had completed just 42 of his 321 career regular season starts.
Learn More about Pedro Martinez
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