Pedro Martinez

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

His control was otherworldly; he could locate a fastball in the corner of the strike zone with surgical precision, and his changeup and curveball made even the best hitters in baseball look helpless. By the time he debuted for Boston in 1998, he was already a Cy Young winner from his time with the Montreal Expos, and he spent the next decade as arguably the best in the sport. For the early Washington Nationals, Martinez represented a particular kind of frustration: you knew what was coming—a fastball up, a changeup down, a curveball that fell off the table—but knowing didn't matter. Red Sox fans chanted his name; opponents simply tried not to strike out. His 2004 World Series run with Boston—winning the title and delivering a gritty, determined performance—remains legendary. Even in his final years with the Mets and Phillies, Martinez carried the aura of a man who had already transcended the game. His induction into the Hall of Fame in 2015 was not a surprise to anyone who had watched him work the corners with a look of mild irritation, as if the batter's box were a personal affront.

In Their Own Story

Nationals Park, 2005. The stands are still settling into their new identity, the scoreboard still learning its own name. Martinez takes the mound in a Boston red jersey, and the air in the stadium changes. You can feel it in the way the crowd's noise drops a half-octave, the way the third-base coach leans forward on the rail. He fires the first pitch—a fastball, dead red, gone. The batter, a young Nationals kid trying to establish himself, swings and the bat cracks but the ball is already in the catcher's mitt. The second pitch is the same. The third is a changeup that hangs just long enough to tempt a swing and just short enough to be a strike. Three pitches. Three strikes. The batter walks back to the dugout with that particular blank stare. Martinez does not celebrate. He simply adjusts his cap, looks at the next hitter, and waits. The Nationals fan in section 112, three rows back, exhales through his nose and mutters to his friend, "That's the guy. That's the guy we keep facing." And the season, and the era, continues.

Reader's Guide

Era at the club's crossroads: Martinez was not a Nationals, but he was the dominant AL East pitcher the young franchise met in 2005 and 2006. His presence in the division defined the competitive ceiling the Nationals were still climbing toward. Playing style: a devastating fastball that seemed to rise as it crossed the plate, a changeup that dropped off a cliff, and a curveball that buckled knees. He pitched with an arrogance that was earned—every start was a lesson in precision and intimidation.

Did You Know?

• Pedro Martinez's career ERA of 2.93 is among the best in Major League history, though not the lowest among pitchers with at least 2,500 innings pitched.
• In 2004, he won the World Series with the Red Sox, but did not win the Cy Young Award, World Series MVP, or AL MVP that season—those honors went to other players.
• He was known for his intense focus and was famously quoted saying, 'I'm a pitcher,' when asked about his approach, reflecting his singular dedication to the craft.
• Martinez was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, receiving 91.1 percent of the vote in his first year of eligibility.
• Against the Nationals in 2005 and 2006, Martinez posted a combined 3-1 record with a 2.45 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 33 innings, turning every matchup into a masterclass.