"I don't know if you realize this, but because of you guys in some ways, I might be at times the most influential player that ever stepped in Yankee Stadium. I can honestly say that..."
When Pedro Martinez left the Boston Red Sox it was literally breaking news. The press conference was carried live, stations interrupted programming-Pedro was gone.
Tonight he is back. Back on the biggest stage in baseball...The World Series, but not in a Red Sox uniform. Pedro is pitching on the mound at Yankee Stadium-it may not be the same Yankee Stadium that was the scene of the greatest heartbreak in Red Sox fan history---you remember, when "he who shall not be named" ...well never mind-too painful to go back...but the ghosts have followed Pedro to the new Yankee stadium-he is after all Pedro Martinez...and every broken hearted Red Sox fan will be watching a World Series we could care less about ---that was until we learned Pedro was pitching.
Since leaving Boston Pedro spent 4 years with the NY Mets, they were injury plagued years and difficult years personally for him as the consummate competitor could not pitch at his own level and it looked like perhaps it was the 9th inning for Pedro's career. He was not healthy, he lost his Dad, went home to be with his Mom and no one expected him to really pitch again at the big league level. Pedro,however, knew he would. He had made his dying father a promise that he would pitch again and so he got himself ready and put himself on the market--there were not a lot of takers at first but the world champion Phillies offered Pedie a chance to come back to the Big Show and be a starter. The Phillies are back in the World Series and Pedro Martinez starts Game 2.
If I blink his red and white uniform could be confused for a Red Sox uniform...oh how we miss Pedro! He was simply the best pitcher, the most electrifying athlete to ever to pitch at Fenway Park...when Pedro pitched it was an event-you didn't miss a Pedro start-and you were rarely disappointed. Pedro has 210 career wins against only 100 losses-if he lost he was probably hurting. Was he a Diva, sure but he earned that right. No matter the box score tonight, no matter the final score tonight, to watch the master at work again, to hopefully see Pedro strike out A-Rod will be an unexpected end of season treat.
"I said it before, when you have 60,000 people chanting your name, waiting for you to throw the ball, you have to consider yourself someone special, someone that really has a purpose out there. "
