What happened to Pedro Martinez?

[KevinWI]

I remember he was really, really good in his time. I can't seem to find if he is coming back from injury after the season or if he hung it up.

[Berkman#17]

he was really, really good in his time

Is a bit of an understatement.

There hasn't been a decision on what he's doing next year. 95% chance he comes back to pitch somewhere, probably back with the Mets.

[efin98]

I remember he was really, really good in his time. I can't seem to find if he is coming back from injury after the season or if he hung it up.

He has been hit hard by injuries the last three years, outside of 2005 he hasn't be the dominant ace that he was expected to be for the Mets...he's still fairly young(only 36) so he has a few good years left in him.

By his own words after his last game of the season it sounded like he knows he won't be back with them so he could be a free agent...

[Evangelion]

He has been hit hard by injuries the last three years, outside of 2005 he hasn't be the dominant ace that he was expected to be for the Mets...he's still fairly young(only 36) so he has a few good years left in him.

By his own words after his last game of the season it sounded like he knows he won't be back with them so he could be a free agent...
I won't call 36 young.

Not to mention he doesn't have the most durable body around.

I do wonder where Martinez will end up next season. Nice to see him have one last run with Boston as a number five starter, but considering their rotation likely full next season, I don't see it happening. Not to mention I doubt FO would take the risk with Martinez, who's likely looking for 2-3 year contract.

A team will pick him. Be interesting to see him return to his roots and sign with the Dodgers.

[Brooklyn]

I doubt he signs wit the Mets and wouldn't be that surprised if he hangs it up. He had nothing left with the Mets this year. He always struck me as a proud man, and you can see in his interviews that it was killing him that he wasn't the same pitcher anymore. Unless he truly believes he can regain some of his old form, I would expect him to retire.

a 2-3 year contract for him is a big risk. he is an aging, injury prone pitcher. he has missed at least 10 starts each of his last three years, missing about half his starts over that time.

I can see a team giving his a one year deal, with options that kick in based on number of innings pitched and / or games starts. But giving more than that to a pitcher that is projected to be a 5th starter and is injury prone is a big risk. Particularly for a contender. And I'm not why Pedro would sign with a team that he didn't believe to be a contender

[STLCards2]

Correct. He wasn't extrememly durable as a 28 year old, so 36 for Pedro is practicaly the same as 42 for Maddux, Glavine, Clemens, Johnson ,etc, who were all extremely durable throughout their careers.

[TheMadDog31]

I remember he was really, really good in his time.

A nominee for the understatement of the century.

I can't seem to find if he is coming back from injury after the season or if he hung it up.

He should do the latter. In fact, he should've hung it up after his first season with the Mets.

To answer your question simply, he got old.

However, you combine age with his very poor mechanics and relatively "unsafe" delivery, and you get a nasty mess.

I can almost guarantee you that he will retire in the off-season.

[NYMets523]

Is a bit of an understatement.

There hasn't been a decision on what he's doing next year. 95% chance he comes back to pitch somewhere, probably back with the Mets.

He needs to hang them up. He gave up something like 19 first inning runs this year. You can't be an effective starter when you always put your team has to come back to tie the game in the 2nd inning in all of your starts. He will probably sign with another team next year. But unless he has a Mike Mussina rebirth, next year will be his last.

[TheMadDog31]

He gave up something like 19 first inning runs this year.

:disbelief: Wow. That I did not know.

[Mattingly]

He needs to hang them up. He gave up something like 19 first inning runs this year. You can't be an effective starter when you always put your team has to come back to tie the game in the 2nd inning in all of your starts. He will probably sign with another team next year. But unless he has a Mike Mussina rebirth, next year will be his last.
Where did you get that figure? I see he gave up 23 runs in the first inning in 88 ABs.

Situational stats (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/splits?playerId=2717) (please scroll down to "By Inning / Pitches", then to "Inning 1".

My feeling on Pedro is that he is a small-bodied power pitcher, so if he were pitching slowly like Maddux or Moyer, both of whom are 6' tall (1" taller than Pedro), and are also just under 200 lbs, then he'd have a better chance. If someone is big-bodied like Clemens, they can last a lot longer.

[NYMets523]

Where did you get that figure? I see he gave up 23 runs in the first inning in 88 ABs.

Situational stats (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/splits?playerId=2717) (please scroll down to "By Inning / Pitches", then to "Inning 1".

It was off the top of my head.

[Mattingly]

It was off the top of my head.
No problem. I didn't really expect much from him. I think that once Boston gives up on a player, that's the Kiss of Death. Other than Damon (well, to some extent, anyway), most of the guys they traded away or let walk, who aren't named Manny Ramirez have failed.

Foulke, Mueller, Garciaparra are a few examples.

Pedro's a long story, and one reason I never wanted him after Boston refused to sign with him was that, for wont of a better term, I knew that his arm was going to fall off. Small guy, big power. Not a good mix to me. He has ahd excellent control over his years, he threw like he'd caught greased lightning all those times, using different arm angles and speeds, but that shoulder problem caught up to him. I believe he has a brother named Ramon, who also played with Boston, that had arm problems also. To me, that was very telling.

He's got tons of pride on himself, but it's like a 4-cylinder car trying to put out as much horsepower as an 8- or 12-cylinder car. Sooner or later, the tiny engine will stop working. You need a big block to do certain things, and in pitching, I think you need a bigger body. For position players, especially middle infielders, a smaller body can work. Just look at Dustin Pedroia.

[Gee Walker]

No problem. I didn't really expect much from him. I think that once Boston gives up on a player, that's the Kiss of Death. Other than Damon (well, to some extent, anyway), most of the guys they traded away or let walk, who aren't named Manny Ramirez have failed.



Well, there's always an exception... Hanley Ramirez. And Jeff Bagwell. Carlton Fisk. Earl Wilson. Derek Lowe. Roger Clemens...

And I vaguely remember this left-handed pitcher, converted to an outfielder, that they sold after the 1919 season.

[Berkman#17]

Boston gets a little too much credit for cutting ties with Foulke, Nomar, etc... Yes they were right about their time being up, and the org. needing to move on, but at the same time, their lack of success (sans a select few) post-Boston didn't really suprise anyone. It didn't take a microscope to find the writing on the wall for most of em.

Wouldn't really call it the "kiss of death", more common sense scouting on Boston (and alot of others) part(s).

[KevinWI]

And I vaguely remember this left-handed pitcher, converted to an outfielder, that they sold after the 1919 season.

Carl Mays?

[Zagi-CRO]

I think and believe Pedro will be back on the track next year.

[KCGHOST]

Sad thing for Pedro is he took the extra money and turned his back on winning championships. Sad thing for the Mets is that they deluded themselves that Pedro would stay healthy and wasted all that money.

[Imgran]

Hmm, interesting question: how would the Sox have done if they'd given Pedro 3 years instead of signing the guy who came in to replace Pedro (Matt Clement)?

I actually kinda doubt the story goes any differently. 2005 Pedro might have gotten us a win in the ALCS, but the White Sox were by far the better team, 2006 Pedro wouldn't have saved the Sox in 2006. 2007 Pedro was a virtual nonfactor who might actually have done damage on the postseason roster unless he was willing to take the #4 spot. 2008 Pedro bascally means we don't re-sign Schill and probably means Buchholz starts the year at AAA but it also means we might not find out about Justin Masterson, so who knows how that turns out.

[NYMets523]

Sad thing for Pedro is he took the extra money and turned his back on winning championships. Sad thing for the Mets is that they deluded themselves that Pedro would stay healthy and wasted all that money.

They signed Pedro more for his impact off the field than on the field. Before 2005, the Mets were a joke. He helped give the team legitimacy.

[gman5431]

Hind sight is 20/20 but the Red Sox definately hit the nail on the head when they let Pedro pick up and leave. He has nothing left and should retire, but if he wants to stay around, i'm sure there will not only be a team willing to sign him, but probably one foolish enough to give him a multi-year deal.

G Man

[Mattingly]

They signed Pedro more for his impact off the field than on the field. Before 2005, the Mets were a joke. He helped give the team legitimacy.
That's exactly what I was going to write. Despite Piazza's reying to attract other top players (he was there from 1999-2005), he couldn't, and the only other "superstar" as Robbie Alomar in 2002, and he didn't even play that well as a Met.

Pedro was signed because of a lack of star power to generate fan interest, and because I heard that ticket sales were down. They only overpaid because they knew the price wasn't going down, and he was their ticket to other stars (especially the Latin players that Mets GM Omar Minaya favors) coming aboard.

I don't think that Pedro was worth that 4th year, but no 4th year, he likely returns to Boston.

Pedro and Steinbrenner did some media tomfoolery before by appearing in public when he was an FA after 2004. They mutually looked good, since the Yanks were starved for an ace, and Pedro had few suitors, since everyone knew he was an injury risk.

As I'd once mentioned to you, Minaya tried getting Posada by offering a 4-year deal. The Yanks, who'd only wanted to offer Posada a 3-year deal, had to give him 4 years. Losing one of the most unheralded switch-hitting backstops who kept the stable of pitching working well, would've been too great an embarassment to many of us Yankee fans.

I guess that with the backing of big-spending sports fanatcs in the NY/NJ/CT area, the Mets could've made the money back in ticket sales and revenue, had Posada signed on and remained healthy.

[Brooklyn]

As a Mets fan, we all knew that he wasn't going to be the same pitcher in year 4 that we were getting in year 1. All I could hope for was 2-3 good years. While he was definitely overpaid, as others have stated they needed to do that to get the box office draw and attract other players.

As it turns out, he had a very good 2005, finishing 4th in ERA. He was right about league average ERA in 2006, and missed a bunch of starts due to injury. HE only pitched 28 innings in 2007, and was terrible in 2008.

In retrospect, I can't say the contract worked out as hoped. a four year deal for one good year and 3 injury plagued mediocre years was less than the Mets were hoping they were getting when they signed him. But if he truly attracted other players, it might not have been so bad. I'd still do it again, knowing the risks, even if I don't think it worked out

[NYMets523]

As I'd once mentioned to you, Minaya tried getting Posada by offering a 4-year deal. The Yanks, who'd only wanted to offer Posada a 3-year deal, had to give him 4 years. Losing one of the most unheralded switch-hitting backstops who kept the stable of pitching working well, would've been too great an embarassment to many of us Yankee fans.

I don't believe the Mets ever got into contract talks with Posada. I don't recall ever reading about the Mets offering a contract, let alone one for 4-years.

Interesting aside, my dad was at the same restaurant when Minaya and his crew met Posada and his agent.