Pedro Martinez (2015)


Date of Birth: 10/25/1971
Birthplace: Manoguayabo, Dominican Republic

Pedro Martinez was not the only professional pitcher in his family. His older brother pitched with the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball camp in their home country of the Dominican Republic. The younger Martinez signed with the Dodgers in June, 1988, and he played in their minor league system from 1990 through most of 1992.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Martinez joined the Dodgers as a starting pitcher in two games in 1992. He had a 2.25 ERA in 8.0 innings. In 1993, he was primarily a relief pitcher for the Dodgers, pitching in 63 games from the bullpen and 2 games as a starter. He had a strong first season in the majors, finishing with 10 wins and 5 losses, 2 saves, 119 strikeouts to 57 walks, and a 2.61 ERA in 107.0 innings.

Montreal Expos (Washington Nationals)

Although he pitched well for the Dodgers, they traded him to the Montreal Expos on November 19, 1993. He was part of the Expos starting rotation from 1994 through 1997. He pitched in just 24 games for them in his first season. He finished the 1994 season with 11 wins and 5 losses, 142 strikeouts to 45 walks, and a 3.42 ERA in 144.2 innings.

Martinez finished the 1995 season with 14 wins and 10 losses, 174 strikeouts to 66 walks, and a 3.51 ERA in 194.2 innings in 30 games. The following year, his ERA went up, but so did his number of strikeouts. He finished the 1996 season with a 13-10 record, 222 strikeouts to 70 walks, and a 3.70 ERA in 216.2 innings in 33 games.

In 1997, Martinez led all major league baseball pitchers with a 1.90 ERA and he won his first Cy Young award. He finished the season with 17 wins to 8 losses and 305 strikeouts to 67 walks in a career high 241.1 innings in 31 games. That year, he led the NL in ERA and in complete games pitched with 13. In addition to the Cy Young award, he was named the Players Choice Outstanding Pitcher of the Year and the Sporting News Pitcher of the Year.

Boston Red Sox

Despite an outstanding season in 1997, the Expos traded Martinez to the Boston Red Sox on November 18th. He went on to play with Boston from 1998 through 2004, having some of his best seasons with them.

In 1998, Martinez had 19 wins and 7 losses. He finished the season with 251 strikeouts to 67 walks and a 2.89 ERA in 233.2 innings in 33 games. He won his second Players Choice Outstanding Pitcher of the Year award that season.

The 1999 season was Martinez's best one. He won the AL Triple Crown, leading the league in ERA, strikeouts, and wins. He won the AL Cy Young award, the Sporting News Pitcher of the Year award, the Associated Press Player of the Year award, the Baseball Digest Pitcher of the Year award, and the Players Choice Outstanding Pitcher of the Year award. He also won the All-Star Game MVP award. He had career highs in wins with 23 (to just 4 losses) and strikeouts with 313 (to 37 walks). He had a 2.07 ERA in 213.1 innings in 31 games.

Martinez followed his outstanding 1999 season with another strong one in 2000. He again led all of major league baseball in ERA, this time with a career low of 1.74. He led the AL in strikeouts with 284 and he won his third and last Cy Young award that year. He had 18 wins and 6 losses in 217.0 innings in 29 games. He also won the Sporting News Pitcher of the Year award, the Baseball Digest Pitcher of the Year award, and the Players Choice Outstanding Pitcher of the Year award in 2000.

Martinez spent significant time on the DL for the first time in his career in 2001. He had a rotator cuff injury that limited his playing time to just 18 games. He finished the season with 7 wins and 3 losses and a 2.39 ERA in 116.2 innings.

In 2002, Martinez returned strong, once again leading major league pitchers in ERA and leading AL pitchers in strikeouts. He finished the season with 20 wins and 4 losses, 239 strikeouts to 40 walks, and a 2.26 ERA in 199.1 innings in 30 games.

Martinez continued his dominance in ERA in 2003, leading all pitchers for the fifth time in his career. In 29 games, he had a 2.22 ERA, 14 wins and 4 losses, and 206 strikeouts to 47 walks in 186.2 innings. He finished his time with the Red Sox in 2004 with 16 wins and 9 losses, 227 strikeouts to 61 walks, and a 3.90 ERA in 217.0 innings in 33 games.

New York Mets

Martinez became a free agent on November 2, 2004, and he signed with the New York Mets on December 17th. In his first season with the Mets, he continued to excel, winning 15 games for the team and losing 8. He had a 2.82 ERA and 208 strikeouts to 47 walks in 217.0 innings in 31 games in 2005.

Martinez suffered from injuries in 2006, 2007, and 2008. Hip and calf injuries limited his playing time to 23 games in 2006, and he finished that season with 9 wins and 8 losses and a 4.48 ERA. The following year, he had rotator cuff surgery and pitched just 28.0 innings in 5 games. He had his worst season in 2008, finishing with 5 wins and 6 losses, 87 strikeouts to 44 walks, and a 5.61 ERA in 109.0 innings in 20 games. That year, it was a hamstring injury that limited his playing time.

Philadelphia Phillies

Martinez became a free agent again on October 31, 2008, but no teams signed him prior to the 2009 season. He finally got a contract with the Philadelphia Phillies on July 15, 2009. He pitched in just 9 games with them, finishing his major league career with 5 wins and 1 loss and a 3.63 ERA in 44.2 innings.

Awards and MLB Records

  • AL Triple Crown
  • Cy Young award (3 times)
  • Sporting News Pitcher of the Year (3 times)
  • Players Choice Outstanding Pitcher of the Year (4 times)
  • Associated Press Player of the Year
  • Baseball Digest Pitcher of the Year
  • All Star Game MVP
  • Led league in ERA (5 times)
  • Led AL in strikeouts (3 times)

Career Statistics

Statistics for Martinez as a major league starting pitcher from 1994 through 2009 include:

  • 8 seasons with 30 or more games played
  • 7 seasons with 200 or more innings pitched, with a high of 241.1 in 1997
  • 9 seasons with 200 strikeouts or more, with a high of 313 in 1999
  • 9 seasons with an ERA under 3.00, with a low of 1.74 in 2000

Career pitching statistics for Martinez include:

  • 476 games played
  • 2,827.1 innings pitched
  • 219-100 win-loss record
  • 3,154 strikeouts to 760 walks
  • 2.93 ERA

Postseason statistics for Martinez include:

  • 5 postseasons
  • 16 games played
  • 96.1 innings pitched
  • 6-4 win-loss record
  • 96 strikeouts to 30 walks
  • 3.46 ERA

Post Playing Career

Martinez returned to the Red Sox as a special assistant to the general manager in 2013.

In 2015, Martinez was hired by the MLB Network as a studio analyst.

Martinez was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2015 on the first ballot with 91.1% of the vote.

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Pedro Martinez
ESPN - Pedro Martinez
Baseball Reference - Pedro Martinez

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