A Tribute to Pedro
Written by Rory, Monday August 17 2009
Seeing Pedro Martinez in a Philly uniform hurts me because I am a huge Pedro fan and a huge Mets fan. It got me thinking about Pedro and how great he has been throughout his career.
I have had the argument with many people about who the greatest pitcher of all time is. I always argue that Pedro in his prime was the best pitcher ever. Here are some of Pedro's numbers. (Career numbers are with pitchers minimum 1000 IP)
- Pedro has a 10.08 K/9 which is good for third all time behind Randy Johnson and Kerry Wood. His 4.15 K/BB is also good for third all time behind only Tommy Bond who played in the 1800's and Curt Schilling.
- Pedro's career WHIP is 1.05 which is good for fifth all time behind Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, and three players from the 1800's. This may be his most impressive accomplishment in my mind because he is a starter, the modern day players ahead of him are closers, and this includes the past few years when he was pitching hurt. Even if the minimum IP is moved down to 500 only Billy Wagner is added ahead of Pedro.
- HIs career ERA is 2.92 and FIP is 2.89. His career ERA+ (which factors in park factor and the league average ERA, the average pitcher holds an ERA+ of 100) is 154 which is good for second all time only behind Mariano's 201.
- Pedro helped break the Curse of the Bambino and brought a World Series Championship to Boston for the first time in 86 years in 2004.
- Pedro has 3 Cy Young Awards but he should definitely have at least 4 (Zito) and maybe even 5 or 6 (Halladay or Clemens).
- Pedro should have won 2 MVP Awards in 1999 and 2000 which are quite possibly the two best pitching seasons of all time.
- In 1999 Pedro had a 2.07 ERA, 13.20 K/9, 8.46 K/BB, 1.39 FIP (leage average that year was 4.71), 245 ERA+ 0.92 WHIP, 23-4 record, 213.1 IP, and 313 K's. What is even funnier is that Pedro was unlucky that year holding a .343 BABIP.
- In 2000 Pedro had a 1.74 ERA, 11.78 K/9, 8.88 K/BB, 2.17 FIP (average was 4.77), 291 ERA+ (best modern day season ERA+, second all time to Tim Keefe's 294 ERA+ in 1880), 0.74 WHIP (all-time best for a single season), 18-6 record, 217 IP, and 284 K's.
- He has a career record of 215-99 and has 3122 K's
- Pedro is only 5'11" and 193 LBs. His small frame is the main reason the Dodgers traded Pedro to the Expos in the 90's.
- Pedro also had been pitching hurt nearly every year after 2003 but was still very successful until about 2006 when injuries got the best of him and had him pitching very poorly.
- Pedro pitched nine innings of perfect baseball during his time with the Expos but was not credited with a perfect game because the Expos were unable to score forcing the game into extra innings during which Pedro gave up a hit in the 10th. This is a perfect game in my mind and should be in the record books as well.
- Pedro was always fun to watch on and off the mound. He had a lively personality and was a vocal leader.
- His prescence in Latin America led many young Latino players to sign with the Mets during his Met tenure.
I love Pedro and he has been among my favorite players ever since I started to like baseball. The numbers support my belief that Pedro Martinez is the greatest pitcher of all time. His peak is unparalleled and was unbelievably dominant. I hope he does well in Philly despite my hate for the Phillies.
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