I will go on and say that I was completely wrong about what Pedro had left last year, I wrote him off and thought his pitching days were over and he was holding out for one last payday and I will say that Martinez proved he had something left in the tank after a ill-faded stint with the New York Mets. As a Met, Pedro started off well in his first season after going 15-8 with an ERA of 2.82 as he was selected to the NL All-Star game that year. But Martinez started to lose arm velocity and began to make more trips to the DL then he did the pitching mound.
Martinez's last season with the Mets was one mired in disappointment and personal loss. Pedro lost his father two summers ago during the 2008 season and went on to lose four of his last six decisions as a Met. Martinez finished his tenure earning 53 million dollars while winning only 32 games over four seasons.
Pedro took an extended leave from baseball after pitching in the World Baseball Classic for the Dominican Republic and performed well in two appearances for the team.Martinez had to wait until mid-season to make a decision and he was reportedly courted by Dodgers, Pirates and Indians, but chose the Phillies and chose the Phillies because of their recent success and the likelihood of returning to the playoffs.
I became a Pedro fan for that stretch run as he was always entertaining to watch on the mound and was reportedly a joy to have in the clubhouse.
Pedro in nine starts as a Phillie last season, went 5-1 with an ERA of 3.63 and his season was highlighted with a vintage Pedro performance against the Mets when he went eight scoreless innings while striking out seven in a 1-0 victory.
But Pedro despite a valient postseason performance, finished in a disappointing fashion when he got the start in Game 6 and went only four innings and gave up four earned runs while walking two and giving up a home run. Martinez still finished that postseason with a 3.71 ERA. And that should be the end of the Pedro experiment.
Bringing Pedro back into an already crowded and muddled lower third of our starting rotation would just cause confusion.
If there was any problem with Martinez last year, it was what the signing did to defined roles on the team. It converted starters to relievers and the rotation wasn't solid.
One notable dust-up from last season was the way Jamie Moyer responded to the Pedro signing and being demoted to the bullpen as a long reliever.
The question this year would be, if you sign Pedro this year, who would you replace in the starting rotation?
-The top two spots are lead-pipe locks with Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels.
-Jamie Moyer has had a great bounce back season and can be considered right now as the third best pitcher in the rotation and has been the Phillies stopper as of late.
-Kyle Kendrick will soon be replaced by J.A Happ in the rotation and the team is looking forward to adding the young left hander back to the active roster.
-Then there is Joe Blanton, who has been the worst starter for the Phillies this season, but his $24 million dollar contract will prevent him from being moved to the bullpen, maybe for a playoff series, but never for an entire half of the season.
I don't see Pedro being satisfied as a set-up guy or closer and those spots are filled right now with Brad Lidge and Ryan Madson (once he returns), so Pedro might have to look elsewhere to rekindle the magic he had last year. We'll always have the memories Pedro, but we don't need you this time.
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