in MLB Articles

Following the playoffs last fall, Pedro Martinez had several suitors as he headed into a very important off season. Martinez could stay with the champion Red Sox, move to the arch rival Yankees, or go back to the National League and hook up with the Mets. Many Martinez supporters thought he should stay in the American League, far away from having to hold a bat and step up to the plate. Being an inside pitcher, Pedro has a propensity for ticking off several opposing players.

Boston offered Martinez a good deal over three years. Martinez was looking for the golden goose, seeking a four-year contract. Balking at the prospect of a 175-pound pitcher with a history of arm problems, the Red Sox weren’t prepared to offer anything longer than three seasons to the aging vet. Undaunted, Martinez continued to shop around for a four-year deal, a contract that could lead into retirement. The Yankees were briefly in the running, but elected instead to spend the money on the younger and seemingly healthier Carl Pavano. Big Mistake. The Mets came up with an amount of money that had media types laughing at the organization.

Fast forward to June, 2005, and number 45 is 7-1 on the season and even flirted with a no-hitter this week. The Yankees and Red Sox pitching staffs are struggling mightily with their new arms and Pedro is proving to be right at home once again in the National League. Let’s not forget the man has won a Cy Young Award in the NL before. If Martinez was a borderline hall-of-famer prior to the season, then surely another tremendous season in a different league would put him over the top. Imagine if he won a Cy Young with his third team? How could you then deny him entry into the shrine?

New York and Boston have to be kicking themselves right about now. The word on Pedro was that he could no longer go past six or seven innings anymore. A compete game two-hitter silenced those thoughts. You have to give Mets GM Omar Minaya all the credit in the world for accurately recognizing what Pedro had left in the tank. If they could go back: do you think the Yankees and Red Sox would have pursued Martinez a little harder instead of signing David Wells and Jaret Wright?