If you want to know how important, how impressive, how valuable and how legendary an athlete is, just think about this: is he a one-name guy? Better yet, is he a first-name guy?
In baseball, they don't make many one-namers. But try this: is there any baseball player in this era, in the past 20 years, that has been better at what he does than Pedro?
You already know, just by his first name, I'm referring to Pedro Martinez. He doesn't need a nickname-he's just Pedro. The Mets should do a Yao Ming and just put "Pedro" on the back of his jersey.
He's a one-namer. He's a future Hall of Famer-and we can be certain that his squirrelly little frame hasn't juiced so much as an orange.
This season, he's been Pedro, per usual. He's toting a 3-0 record for the Mets that features 17 K's, a .188 batting average against, and an ERA a little over 3.6.
Sure, there's "other" great, classic and legendary pitchers still playing the game, like Curt Schilling, Greg Maddux, and Randy Johnson. And, like Pedro, they're off to great starts this year: Schilling's 3-0 with 16 K's and an ERA of 1.64-opponents are batting just .147 against him. He hasn't looked this good in four or five years. Maddux has been masterful for the Cubs; also 3-0 with 14 K's and an ERA of 1.33-opponents are batting just .149 against him.
You certainly can't forget about Roger Clemens (who could, right?), should he return for a half season. The Rocket has everyone in the Lone Star state serenading him with Bowling for Soup's "Come Back to Texas", while Red Sox fans are searching for Dave Loggins, so he can sing "Please Come to Boston" over and over until Clemens gives in. Seriously, I haven't seen a dogged pursuit like this since Tommy Lee Jones and Harrison Ford in 'The Fugitive'.
Clemens, at 43, is certainly amazing-but he didn't help bring a championship to the Red Sox. Pedro did.
Each makes a case for his dominance-certainly there was a time in the 1990's where they were all basically untouchable. But Pedro's always been different than the rest.
Pedro was there and carried the team on his back season after season (long before Schilling was wooed away from Arizona in '03)-sometimes as their only quality major league pitcher. Seriously, has anyone ever carried a pitching staff like Martinez did for most of his Boston career?
Schilling and Johnson had each other in Arizona. Schilling had Pedro in Boston, now he's got Beckett. Maddux had Smoltz and Glavine in Atlanta. Johnson's also had the Yankees $150 million dollar staff and pen in New York.
With Pedro, from 1998-2003, nearly every start was something of an event; his pitches like works of art. From the varied arm angles, superb control, speed changes and the use of three pitches that have the same effect as nova cane, Pedro's stat lines really are DaVinci like. At 5'11", he's one of the shortest power pitchers ever. Even now, as his fastball tops out at 88-89 mph, he remains dominant by being smarter on the mound than the batter in the box.
I wonder if this means they'll write a book or make a film called 'The Pedro Code', about major league hitters trying to figure out the mind of Martinez-because it would take that.
His first years for the Red Sox were some of the best years ever by a pitcher-and in the A.L. with the DH, that's impressive in itself.
But the difference between Pedro isn't in his stats-though with 2,878 strikeouts, being first among active pitchers in ERA (2.72), strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.31), hits allowed per nine innings (6.82) and 3 Cy Young's, it could be-it's in the way he plays. That's why he's the best pitcher of this generation. His starts are events. His games are legendary.
Like Game 5 of the ALDS in '99, when he came out of the pen with a slight injury to absolutely shut down the Indians over the final six innings by striking out eight and walking just three-carrying Boston to the ALCS. Or getting a perfect game without actually getting it-he retired the first 27 Padres he faced in June of '95, before giving up a double in the 10th inning of a 0-0 tie. Just three years earlier, it would have counted.
Maybe it's the way he handled the rivalry with the Yankees-famously quoted as saying, "Wake up the damn Bambino, have me face him-maybe I'll drill him in his ass." Or the fact he still isn't afraid to knock somebody down with an inside pitch, even if it's the insane Jose Vidro.
His win last night made him the second fastest pitcher to reach 200 wins, at 200-84. He's still just 34-but we were so used to dominate Pedro that the last three years it seemed like he jumped the shark. But as last night proves, it also makes him the most effiecent pitcher with 200 wins ever, with a win percentage of .704. Is there anyone better, perhaps ever? Certainly not in skill and entertainment value combined.
Vote for Pedro-because one name is all you need.
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You already know, just by his first name, I'm referring to Pedro Martinez. He doesn't need a nickname-he's just Pedro. The Mets should do a Yao Ming and just put "Pedro" on the back of his jersey.
He's a one-namer. He's a future Hall of Famer-and we can be certain that his squirrelly little frame hasn't juiced so much as an orange.
This season, he's been Pedro, per usual. He's toting a 3-0 record for the Mets that features 17 K's, a .188 batting average against, and an ERA a little over 3.6.
Sure, there's "other" great, classic and legendary pitchers still playing the game, like Curt Schilling, Greg Maddux, and Randy Johnson. And, like Pedro, they're off to great starts this year: Schilling's 3-0 with 16 K's and an ERA of 1.64-opponents are batting just .147 against him. He hasn't looked this good in four or five years. Maddux has been masterful for the Cubs; also 3-0 with 14 K's and an ERA of 1.33-opponents are batting just .149 against him.
You certainly can't forget about Roger Clemens (who could, right?), should he return for a half season. The Rocket has everyone in the Lone Star state serenading him with Bowling for Soup's "Come Back to Texas", while Red Sox fans are searching for Dave Loggins, so he can sing "Please Come to Boston" over and over until Clemens gives in. Seriously, I haven't seen a dogged pursuit like this since Tommy Lee Jones and Harrison Ford in 'The Fugitive'.
Clemens, at 43, is certainly amazing-but he didn't help bring a championship to the Red Sox. Pedro did.
Each makes a case for his dominance-certainly there was a time in the 1990's where they were all basically untouchable. But Pedro's always been different than the rest.
Pedro was there and carried the team on his back season after season (long before Schilling was wooed away from Arizona in '03)-sometimes as their only quality major league pitcher. Seriously, has anyone ever carried a pitching staff like Martinez did for most of his Boston career?
Schilling and Johnson had each other in Arizona. Schilling had Pedro in Boston, now he's got Beckett. Maddux had Smoltz and Glavine in Atlanta. Johnson's also had the Yankees $150 million dollar staff and pen in New York.
With Pedro, from 1998-2003, nearly every start was something of an event; his pitches like works of art. From the varied arm angles, superb control, speed changes and the use of three pitches that have the same effect as nova cane, Pedro's stat lines really are DaVinci like. At 5'11", he's one of the shortest power pitchers ever. Even now, as his fastball tops out at 88-89 mph, he remains dominant by being smarter on the mound than the batter in the box.
I wonder if this means they'll write a book or make a film called 'The Pedro Code', about major league hitters trying to figure out the mind of Martinez-because it would take that.
His first years for the Red Sox were some of the best years ever by a pitcher-and in the A.L. with the DH, that's impressive in itself.
But the difference between Pedro isn't in his stats-though with 2,878 strikeouts, being first among active pitchers in ERA (2.72), strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.31), hits allowed per nine innings (6.82) and 3 Cy Young's, it could be-it's in the way he plays. That's why he's the best pitcher of this generation. His starts are events. His games are legendary.
Like Game 5 of the ALDS in '99, when he came out of the pen with a slight injury to absolutely shut down the Indians over the final six innings by striking out eight and walking just three-carrying Boston to the ALCS. Or getting a perfect game without actually getting it-he retired the first 27 Padres he faced in June of '95, before giving up a double in the 10th inning of a 0-0 tie. Just three years earlier, it would have counted.
Maybe it's the way he handled the rivalry with the Yankees-famously quoted as saying, "Wake up the damn Bambino, have me face him-maybe I'll drill him in his ass." Or the fact he still isn't afraid to knock somebody down with an inside pitch, even if it's the insane Jose Vidro.
His win last night made him the second fastest pitcher to reach 200 wins, at 200-84. He's still just 34-but we were so used to dominate Pedro that the last three years it seemed like he jumped the shark. But as last night proves, it also makes him the most effiecent pitcher with 200 wins ever, with a win percentage of .704. Is there anyone better, perhaps ever? Certainly not in skill and entertainment value combined.
Vote for Pedro-because one name is all you need.