Per ESPN:
December 15, 2004, 9:37 PM ET
NEW YORK — Pedro Martinez, welcome to New York.
Martinez passed his physical Wednesday, and the Mets finalized their $53 million, four-year contract with the pitcher they hope will take them to the postseason.
The Mets scheduled a news conference for Shea Stadium on Thursday at 11 a.m. to introduce Martinez, who turned down a $40.5 million, three-year offer from the Boston Red Sox and told his agent Monday to work out a deal with New York.
The total guaranteed value of his contract was obtained by The Associated Press from a baseball official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Martinez, a 33-year-old right-hander, has had shoulder problems at times. He had a physical in New York and passed it, Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said.
Fast foward through many injuries, a historical collapse and an injury plagued season..only 3 years total
Per MLB.com
07/14/09 8:15 PM ET
ST. LOUIS — Pedro Martinez has signed a one-year contract with the Phillies, baseball sources confirmed Tuesday.
Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. declined comment just hours after Martinez passed his physical in Philadelphia. But one source said the contract is worth about $1 million, plus about $1.5 million in incentives, which is less than the prorated $5 million contract Martinez reportedly had been seeking earlier this season.
Pedro Martinez putting on/taking off Mets Hat
So…Pedro is Philly. Talk about awkward. Being of Dominican decent(born in Brooklyn), Pedro Martinez is one of our biggest stars. I was a huge Pedro fan for most of his career. However with the news that he will be joining the Phillies, in the middle of a heated rivalry has me feeling a bit….confused. Dont get me wrong, i have no ill will toward Pedro but I have been inclined to root for him the majority of his career and i am not sure if i will be able to. You see, Pedro signed with us for the 2005 season as Omar Minayas first big free agent acquisition. The second I found out that Pedro would be a Met, I ran toward Modells to buy a jersey. While Pedro enjoyed a pretty good season in 05, the subsequent seasons were not to kind to him as he dealt with many injuries and never really contributed to the Mets when they really needed him down the stretch. Of course during this time, the Mets/Philly rivalry gained serious momentum and is now one of the most intense rivalries in the league. Now that Pedro is on the Mets arch-nemesis, I honestly dont know how to feel. I want to root for him as he is Pedro Martinez but at the same time…its a Philly. While Pedro is far from a home grown talent, in my opinion he ushered in a new era in the Mets organization and to that I tip my cap. The problem however is that i still own a Pedro Martinez jersey.
My Pedro Jersey
I am asking our TRDMB readers to decide the fate of my Pedro Jersey as it hangs in my closet unaware of its fate! Please Vote Here!
update
71 comments
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-9:14am at 9:14 am (UTC -4)
dirty, I know how you feel. I’ll still be rocking my Pedro jersey. The guy was the man and is a very nice guy. My wife’s family is good friends with his wife, Carolina, and he’s always been very gracious towards them.
It’s too bad Pedro couldn’t retire a Met, but that’s the way it be’s some time, papi.
I’ll be hoping that all his games are no decisions, followed by bullpen losses.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-9:25am at 9:25 am (UTC -4)
yea you know…i dont wish him ill or anything but its weird. It would be like carlos beltran playing for the phill or braves or yankees..just awkward. I totally agree with your last part lol
darknova306
7/15/2009-9:53am at 9:53 am (UTC -4)
I agree completely, Case. The thing is, I think his propensity to give up HRs coupled with CBP is going to be a disaster. I still love him, though, and don’t really hold any grudge against him for heading to Philly.
Joe R
7/15/2009-9:24am at 9:24 am (UTC -4)
I agree…He has that IT factor and even with Johan I still would have been more excited if Pedro took the mound at Citi.
He is one of the best of all time. What he did in 99, in the midst of the steroid era, in the American leasgue, and in all these band box stadiums is remarkable!! Wish we signed him because I want to see him return to form, no matter how far fetched it may be, but now I cant.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-9:27am at 9:27 am (UTC -4)
agreed and i think his time in NY is truley over unfortunay…if it was up to pedro, he would want to come back to leave on a high note.
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-9:33am at 9:33 am (UTC -4)
maybe if he does well enough, he may get a ST invite to PSL
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-9:44am at 9:44 am (UTC -4)
maybe..but will it be the same
sort of like a girl you were in love with leaving you for a guy that you know of and know he is an ahole but when shes done with him she wants to come back…best analogy i can come up with lol
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-11:11am at 11:11 am (UTC -4)
it won’t be the same, but you’d still hit it for old times sake and you’d compare every new gf to her. hehe
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-11:17am at 11:17 am (UTC -4)
lmaooo
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-11:48am at 11:48 am (UTC -4)
you laugh cuz you know it’s true
charlie_s
7/15/2009-9:34am at 9:34 am (UTC -4)
This is kind of like me rooting against Ryan Braun because he and I are Jewish. Hahahahahah!
I’m kidding, of course. Look, Dirty, you need to suspend your idolatry of Pedro for three months… that’s all.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-9:41am at 9:41 am (UTC -4)
lol im afraid its worse than that though
pedro with expos-cool
pedro with red sox-cooler(lived in ny and was not a yank fan)
pedro with mets-coolest!!
pedro with philly-??
see the confusion lol. It would be like what johan means to venezualian met fans or carlos delgado to puerto rican met fans but they side with the mets arch nemesis…just puts a foul taste in your mouth…
charlie_s
7/15/2009-9:46am at 9:46 am (UTC -4)
I hear you, I really do. Like Big Papi playing for team Puerto Rico.
Sorry, Dirty…too bad the Mets aren’t good enough to make it a moot point.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-9:52am at 9:52 am (UTC -4)
haha exactly @ big papi playing for team PR..its like wtf..
well right now we are not good but we will get better..thats a certainty. Just gotta treat this as the second half and dont let anything carry over, start fresh. Focus on defense and pitching.
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-9:53am at 9:53 am (UTC -4)
Or A-Rod playing for the USA, then for the DR. That’s not cool. Like Johnny Damon playing for the Yanks after being the face of the Red Sox for four years.
It’s amazing to me that all it took was $1MM for the year, with $1.5MM in incentives. To think Pedro couldn’t do better than Tim Redding, Oliver Perez, and Livan Hernandez (lately anyway) is an embarassment to our team’s talent evaluators.
I think the best way to handle this if you’re a true Pedro fan is to let ownership hear it. Pedro vs. Redding? Pedro vs. Livan? Pedro vs. Ollie? Give me a break already. We’ll probably sit back and watch Halladay go to the Phils also because we can’t “buck up” and admit mistakes.
I’ll tell you one more thing: the Yanks would have dumped Castillo for Hudson. They would not think twice about letting someone and his 36MM contract rot in the minors because it was a bad signing (see Kei Igawa). I’m not killing them for not signing Pedro. I’m killing them for not making moves based on $.
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-9:56am at 9:56 am (UTC -4)
FYI: the 36MM comment was re:Ollie.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-9:56am at 9:56 am (UTC -4)
but we are not the yankees…no team can do what the yankees can do.
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-9:59am at 9:59 am (UTC -4)
I’m not saying dump every bad contract, but don’t treat each one as an albatross that stops you from adding a $2.5MM (tops) arm that can help you this year. It’s ridiculous already. They got him cheap.
I have to give it to the Phils. They made a good move here. They should have invited him to the owner’s box during a home game and had Suzyn Waldman say, “Pedro Martinez is in Jawge’s Bawx! This is the 2nd most dramatic thing I’ve ever seen”
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-10:04am at 10:04 am (UTC -4)
well..i agree with you with the phills and this deal. From 5mil to 1mil and 1.5 in incentives is a steal and upgrade for them. I too agree that most of the mets decisions revolve around money(i.e. keeping marlon anderston that was due 1.5 over nick evans to start the year) and it sucks but the mets dont have the budget or resouces to pay 3 people for one position when in reality only having one person manning the position(ref: castillo).
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-10:05am at 10:05 am (UTC -4)
I guess you didn’t see Pedro pitch the last couple of seasons. Who was he helping?
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-10:12am at 10:12 am (UTC -4)
I saw him pitch. Let’s not forget, last year was his first full season back after shoulder surgery.
I take Pedro for $1MM any day over Tim Redding or Livan Hernandez and whatever they are making.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-10:20am at 10:20 am (UTC -4)
thats the problem tho..if you cut redding then you are really paying pedro 3 mil since redding is owed 2 mil but is not playing for your team. Thats why is not as ez to just drop a player because they are not doing well. You still have to pay that player and the player is not even playing on your team.
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-10:34am at 10:34 am (UTC -4)
more importantly, why would a team battling so many injuries want a guy who hasn’t been able to stay ont he field for most of the last three years and has pitched particularly well on the infrequent occasions he was able to take the ball?
charlie_s
7/15/2009-10:20am at 10:20 am (UTC -4)
Dude, I’m with you in your disgust of the FO and all, but this might be a bit far.
1. Pedro has been terrible; nowhere near good. Can we let him throw a pitch for the Phils or how about actually turn in a few good game starts before we kill the Mets?
2. Not getting Halladay is analogous to most of us not buying a Ferrari. It’s not that we don’t want one, we just can’t afford it. The Mets don’t have the parts to trade for him. It has nothing to do with not bucking up or admitting mistakes.
3. The Mets are not the Yankees. The sooner we all accept that, the better. The Yanks have much more money. Oh, and let’s not forget that the Wilpons lost $700,000,000 to Madoff.
Kingman 26
7/15/2009-10:39am at 10:39 am (UTC -4)
Did you watch Pedro pitch last year????
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-11:48am at 11:48 am (UTC -4)
i did. he was also about 12 months removed from tommy john surgery. it’s not so much that pedro is this excellent pitcher at this point. it’s more about while he is what he is, that is still an upgrade over 3/5 of our rotation. especially when nieve comes back down to earth.
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-11:49am at 11:49 am (UTC -4)
sorry. not tommy john surgery. rotator cuff surgery. even less successful returns within a year.
prismo
7/15/2009-9:51am at 9:51 am (UTC -4)
This really isn’t that difficult. All of us loved Pedro as a Met, but he’s a PHILLIE now. You have to root for him to fail; to IMPLODE. That’s just how it is.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-9:55am at 9:55 am (UTC -4)
lol put an ollie on him lol
if it was anyone else(church/shef/schneider), it would be no problem but pedro is like on a Babe Ruth level with dominicans. That guy is a hero for alot of people over there and alot of people look up to him. That makes it harder to root for the implosion and hence the confusion lol
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-9:55am at 9:55 am (UTC -4)
I’m a Mets fan first. I loved Pedro in his time here, but I can’t cheer for him. I’ll remain indifferent and hope this move blows up in their faces somehow. For some reason, I can see him going 7-2 with a 4.5ERA. In other words, an upgrade over their 3-5…and our 3-5 as well.
mrbill
7/15/2009-10:04am at 10:04 am (UTC -4)
Or 2-7 (those two games with the mets of course)
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-10:10am at 10:10 am (UTC -4)
haha…he will do much better than 2-7. Their offense is too good and he’s not going to get lit up. He’s too good for that. If Livan Hernandez can have 9 quality starts, Pedro should be able to.
mrbill
7/15/2009-10:23am at 10:23 am (UTC -4)
True. Pedro should be able to beat our AA team.
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:03am at 10:03 am (UTC -4)
Disagree you can root for the Phils to lose all the games he pitches whether it be Pedro getting a no decision or the bullpen blowing, etc the game but we dont have to hope and wish he implodes imo.
prismo
7/15/2009-10:37am at 10:37 am (UTC -4)
Yes we do. Then he’ll have to leave games early and decimate their bullpen. Domino effect!
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-9:57am at 9:57 am (UTC -4)
Look at this way. Pedro will finally help the Mets for the first time since the first year of his contract with the Mets.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-10:01am at 10:01 am (UTC -4)
lmaoo…can always count on wanny for a unique pov that i never thought of
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:04am at 10:04 am (UTC -4)
Very cute lol but he has helped this organization for years to come.
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-10:06am at 10:06 am (UTC -4)
How so?
When he was signed Omar talked about how Pedro’s influence would lead to the Mets being leaders in signing young Dominican international free agents.
That has not occurred.
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:09am at 10:09 am (UTC -4)
Cmon….look at the players that signed with us after him.
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-10:11am at 10:11 am (UTC -4)
Beltran? And who else?
Meanwhile, Beltran tried to go to the Yankees for less money. He came to the Mets because they blew away the world with their offer.
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:18am at 10:18 am (UTC -4)
First off they sold about 500,000 more tickets the year he joined us, putting energy in the fan base and restoring some credibility to a team that was 20 games under .500 They signed Beltran along with Wagner and convinced Delgado to waive no trade claus, etc. I mean you can look at his signing as the point where we expect to make the playoffs and win.
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-10:23am at 10:23 am (UTC -4)
I am confortable saying he ushered in a new era in mets baseball…whether or not his presence influenced the signings of beltran/gado/fmart is subjective and hard to prove. Theres no denying the first part of your comment though. This team was an after thought before pedro.
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:25am at 10:25 am (UTC -4)
I can roll with that. Exactly even if you dont believe Pedro had anything to do with signing players u cant deny the ticket sales, the energy, and like u said Dirty a new era where now we expect to win and put a good team on the field.
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-10:26am at 10:26 am (UTC -4)
I never saw anything that reported that the Mets sold 500k more tickets as a result of pedro signing.
Beltran didn’t sign with the mets because of Pedro. He signed with the Mets for more than 100 million dollars and tried to go to the Yankees for less.
Wagner also came to the Mets, who were the highest bidder.
Did anyone take less money to come to the Mets simply because Pedro was here? Until that is shown, I have a hard time crediting him for helping the team acquire anyone.
Florida was in the middle of another tear down when Delgado agreed to come to the Mets. They also got rid of Beckett, Pierre, Lowell, Burnett, Castillo and Todd Jones. He would have needed his head top have stayed there.
Again, the Mets signed Pedro and promptly established a Dominican academy. Yet, where are the big international signings?
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:30am at 10:30 am (UTC -4)
Listen, I cant argue your points beacause i dont know what each player was thinking when they were laying in bed making a decision. What I do know is for a fact we did sell more tickets, the energy was way different, and from the day he signed we have been an excellent team in the running for every free agent and trade.
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:07am at 10:07 am (UTC -4)
No matter how good Halladay is or CC or Johan they dont have nearly the same stuff Pedro once did. I mean Pedro would blow hitters away with ease. Johan basically has 2 pitches and his fastball barely gets to 93 most days with little movement. Im not knocking Johan, I love him and he’s great, but Pedro’s fastball at times would be 95 with crazy movement. Wish we had him in his prime.
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-10:13am at 10:13 am (UTC -4)
You can’t compare Johan and Pedro. Unfair. I think Pedro was otherworldly in his prime, while Johan is excellent.
Joe R
7/15/2009-10:19am at 10:19 am (UTC -4)
Im confused…whats unfair about comparing two excellent pitchers in basically the same era??
There's Always '09
7/15/2009-10:59am at 10:59 am (UTC -4)
Pedro is an All-Time great. Johan is just excellent.
It would be like comparing Pujols to Beltran. Beltran is an excellent player, but he’s no Pujols.
One Pedro story that sticks in my mind is Game 5 of the ALDS in 1999 vs. Cleveland. The score was something like 8-8 after 2 innings. The Red Sox brought in Pedro in the 3rd inning and he surrendered 1 hit the rest of the way.
Don’t get me wrong, Johan is great, but Pedro is an all time great.
Joe R
7/15/2009-11:07am at 11:07 am (UTC -4)
Agreed!
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-10:38am at 10:38 am (UTC -4)
Funny. Pedro is alreayd on the DL:
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4328568
dirtysanchez
7/15/2009-10:52am at 10:52 am (UTC -4)
lmaooo..you cant make this up
Joe R
7/15/2009-11:06am at 11:06 am (UTC -4)
Wow
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-11:06am at 11:06 am (UTC -4)
duh, he’s on the DL to get his minor league starts. He’ll be pitching for the Phils in 2-3 weeks.
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-12:17pm at 12:17 pm (UTC -4)
so, we’ll def be facing Pedro in late August
Kingman 26
7/15/2009-10:42am at 10:42 am (UTC -4)
Damn, I am sick of the “Pedro helped the team sign everyone” nonsense.
Beltran came here after the Yanks said no because no one else offered him anything close to what we did.
Maybe we signed one or two Latin free agents due to Pedro, maybe we didn’t.
COME ON already!
Pedro was very good in 2005, and OK and then injured when really needed in 2006, hurt in 2007, and AWFUL last year.
Can we focus on reality and the future?
mrbill
7/15/2009-10:47am at 10:47 am (UTC -4)
It is painful to focus on reality and future right now… It doesn’t look so good.
Kingman 26
7/15/2009-10:52am at 10:52 am (UTC -4)
Very true…however, while there is perhaps a small chance of us making the postseason this year, there is ZERO chance of Pedro being a Met, and ZERO chance of Pedro contributing anything worthwhile last year.
I would also say that there is very little chance he will be any better than what Livan has been for us.
Sorry, I am just SOOOOOO sick of all of this “Pedro did this” and “Pedro did that”….he did zip the last three years except be injured and mediocre, and he was last very good four long years ago.
He DID NOT have anything in the world to do with signing Beltran.
And while he might have sold a few tickets in 2005, he did not sell squat in 2006, when the team was excellent and would have sold tons of tickets regardless.
Joe R
7/15/2009-11:04am at 11:04 am (UTC -4)
Pedro ushered in a new era of credibility and excitement and respect. How do you know Pedro didnt help in the signing of Wagner and Beltran. Maybe Beltran would have taken a few less dollars from the Yanks if he thought the Mets werent going to contend. Who knows? I dont claim to know but most ppl around the team agree he helped restore some aspects of the organization that were lacking.
wannybackstra
7/15/2009-11:10am at 11:10 am (UTC -4)
he tried to get a few less dollars from the Yanks and they told him to buzz off.
Kingman 26
7/15/2009-11:18am at 11:18 am (UTC -4)
Wright and Reyes ushered in the new era a lot more than Pedro did.
And did anyone else offer Wagner nearly what we offered him?
Beltran clearly came here for the massive contract which the Yanks and Astros would not match.
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-11:08am at 11:08 am (UTC -4)
apparently, the Mets FO knew Pedro’s shoulder was ready to come off, yet still signed him. So, maybe he was just signed to be the new face of the new era.
Kingman 26
7/15/2009-11:19am at 11:19 am (UTC -4)
Perhaps….don’t get me wrong, I was THRILLED when we signed him, and I was very pleasantly surprised at what a great guy he seemed to be.
But, overall, I think he was basically a gigantic flop, aside from 2005.
CaseStreet
7/15/2009-11:22am at 11:22 am (UTC -4)
“Sox doctors knew what the Mets doctors knew: MartÃnez’s rotator cuff was hanging by a thread. From the moment he left the Sox and signed a lucrative four-year deal with the Mets, there was a tick, tick, tick emanating from MartÃnez’s right shoulder.”
from this 10/1/06 article:
http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/articles/2006/10/01/pedros_surgery_cuts_both_ways/
Joe R
7/15/2009-11:37am at 11:37 am (UTC -4)
Good article I forgot or maybe blocked out all the injuries he had. Calf, toe, this and that lol
mrbill
7/15/2009-11:29am at 11:29 am (UTC -4)
But, overall, I think he was basically a gigantic flop, aside from 2005.
True. Not his fault he got hurt but his injuries definitely hurt the team.
Joe R
7/15/2009-11:41am at 11:41 am (UTC -4)
Of course…its not a matter up for debate. If you are strickly looking at the number of games he pitched during his contract with what he should have, there is no conclusion to come to except he was a flop. I look at the intangibles he brought to this team. I understand some believe this is a myth but I dont.
Question: With the horrible production he gave us why wasnt there a cry for Pedro’s head or Omar’s?
I think because most Met fans agree with me that he helped the organization gain some respect. I could be wrong but that is what I will take from Pedro’s time spent with us.
Kingman 26
7/15/2009-12:08pm at 12:08 pm (UTC -4)
Joe, the way I see it is that it was a great signing at the time, but turned very sour.
I could never argue with it at the time.
My basic point, annoying as it may be, is that I do not think Pedro contributed anything other than a really good 2005 season. I do not think he did squat to get other players, or to rehabilitate the organization’s image.
Joe R
7/15/2009-12:21pm at 12:21 pm (UTC -4)
I hear ya..I do think he did, maybe because I want to believe he did something positive lol. Also, I know Gary Cohen doesnt know everything but how many times on air the past few years has he stated what Pedro meant to the organization. I guess it could be opinion on his part though.
Kingman 26
7/15/2009-12:58pm at 12:58 pm (UTC -4)
Good point—-Gary Cohen does seem to know a lot and usually be right on the money.
But I do love Pedro—I think disappointment colors my perception of the whole situation.