Pedro did it clean

[Soxfan1]

Pedro Martinez on Steroids Era: ‘I dominated that era and I did it clean’

 

By MIKE FITZPATRICK, AP Baseball Writer Feb 14, 7:11 pm EST

 

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PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP)—Pedro Martinez knows his place in the Steroids Era.

 

“I dominated that era and I did it clean,” he said. “I can stand by my numbers and I can be proud of them.”

 

No longer the No. 1 pitcher on his staff, Martinez reported to spring training Thursday with the New York Mets and soon was asked about baseball’s doping scandal.

 

The three-time Cy Young Award winner said he hasn’t paid much attention to the fallout from the Mitchell Report, and he didn’t watch Roger Clemens testify before Congress on Wednesday. But Martinez said he’ll probably get caught up on his computer now that he’s in camp.

 

Martinez did have some pointed words, however, for the reporter who once called him a prima donna.

 

“I have a small frame and when I hurt all I could do was take a couple of Aleve or Advil, a cup of coffee and a little mango and an egg—and let it go!” he said.

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Martinez’s point: He wasn’t going to try human growth hormone or any other performance-enhancing substance. In fact, he would welcome a more stringent drug-testing program in baseball.

 

“I wish that they would check every day. That’s how bad I want the game to be clean,” said Martinez, who had his best years with Montreal and Boston from 1997-2003. “I would rather go home (than) taint the game.”

 

He’s not ready to go home just yet.

 

Wearing sunglasses and all-black workout gear on a sparkling afternoon, the right-hander played long toss and chatted with manager Willie Randolph before plopping down on a picnic table to meet the media.

 

Back in the clubhouse, there was a Valentine’s Day bounty waiting at Martinez’s locker, complete with balloons, a teddy bear and two bouquets of flowers.

 

Entering the final season of a $53 million, four-year contract, the 36-year-old Martinez said he’d like to keep pitching for the Mets beyond 2008.

 

“It’s going to be all dictated by my health,” he said. “If I’m healthy, I still have a couple years left. … If I don’t finish as a Met, I think it’s going to be a long haul to find another team or whatever.”

 

Martinez said he feels better than he has in almost a decade—before his right shoulder gave him any problems at all. But he’s not sure he’ll be able to make 30-plus starts this season.

 

“Nobody’s guaranteed to do that,” he said.

 

Maybe a new partner will help.

 

The Mets recently acquired two-time Cy Young winner Johan Santana from Minnesota, a move that should take pressure off Martinez, who missed most of last season following shoulder surgery.

 

“Ahh, I can breathe,” Martinez said. “I’m extremely happy to have Johan here. It’s like a big glass of cold water when you’re thirsty.

 

“I can’t wait to give him a big hug and tell him, ‘Hey, we’re together.’ One from the left side, one from the right side.”

 

Still, Martinez isn’t planning to play second fiddle to anyone.

 

“I know Johan is an ace. And when I get the ball, I’m an ace,” he said. “When I get the ball as a starter, I’m the guy styling.”

 

Martinez’s rigorous rehabilitation took a toll on him last year. He returned to the mound late in the season, going 3-1 with a 2.57 ERA and 32 strikeouts in five starts.

 

“When I came back I was still beat up from all the work. I was still stiff,” Martinez said. “I was healthy, but I was mentally and physically fatigued.”

 

And he was embarrassed by the team’s historic collapse. The Mets squandered a seven-game NL East lead with 17 to play and missed the playoffs, coughing up the division title to Philadelphia on the final day of the season.

 

“I’m not used to it. I was born a winner. I don’t want to go down like that,” Martinez said.

 

He doesn’t think the team choked or got scared—just tired.

 

“You could call it lack of concentration, fatigue,” Martinez said. “We failed because we got tired and at the end of the year we didn’t know how to mentally prepare for those 20 games.”

 

He said the Mets need to pay back their fans for that flop, and he’s glad they added a workhorse like Santana to help. But Martinez wouldn’t make any predictions, unlike Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins last offseason. Rollins boasted that Philadelphia was the team to beat in the NL East, then backed it up by winning the NL MVP award.

 

“We have to make Jimmy swallow his tongue,” Martinez said with a smile.

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-mets-martinez&prov=ap&type=lgns

 

Pedro=Most dominating pitcher of all time.

[Thumper]

ERRRR STUPID THEO GOT RID OF HIM! STUPID TEHO SYMPATHIST!

 

Ha ha.

 

Goddamn I miss Pedro.

[Jayhawk Bill]

Pedro grew up in the Dominican Republic, where all of the promising young players were fed steroids as teenagers. I don't believe Pedro for a moment that he never did steroids, and his choice of raising the issue makes me speculate that he might've used them in MLB, too.

 

He sure fell apart once the testing era started, didn't he?

[a700hitter]

Pedro grew up in the Dominican Republic, where all of the promising young players were fed steroids as teenagers. I don't believe Pedro for a moment that he never did steroids, and his choice of raising the issue makes me speculate that he might've used them in MLB, too.

 

He sure fell apart once the testing era started, didn't he?

Blasphemer!

[mtbykr]

What he has done has been flat out amazing. If he did it clean in that era against those hitters, it's pretty crazy!

[Mr Crunchy]

what he did at his peak was amazing,ive never seen anything remotely as dominant over time.

the really amazing thing i saw?

how he held on and finished the final 5 years of his 7 uear deal was the amazing thing cause in july 99 he f***ed his career up over throwing in the allstar game.

as far as drugs go

do i believe him?

i seen his face explode in size in 1 off season,i think between 01-02 i think was the biggest difference,he threw with a torn labrum or a frayed rotator cuff,ended up with infections on his toe which really f***ed up his motion and assorted leg and other arm ailments would frequently keep him out of occasional starts.

the man dont have a pitchers build

god help baseball if this kid had ramones size and legs

anyways i would bet that he used to build up some arm strenght and avoid surgery that would need to shelve him for a year,i think he new this in the fall of 99,probably sooner.

theres no heresay or proof on my end just the body morphing,the head growing and the velocity falling all while peter becomes a pitcher as opposed to a thrower

now men grow and gain weight but this kid was 175lbs in 98 throwing 95-97 religously with the change up and impeccable command

at the end of his sox career he was a breaking ball pitcher with great control and knowledge of the hitters and he turned itno an effective al pitcher who could dominate in the nl west and al west series but had trouble in the east against everyone at the end.

i hated to see him walk but 4/52 wasnt reasonable for a guy who struggled against tampa and flat out couldnt beat ny anymore

think of becks and dice getting a combined 19M per and petey about 15? i think this year and we can give theo the W in passing on this guy,, even if it may have cost them a run in 05 which im not sure it did due to the combined injuries to the entire staff.

 

now if the mets get into october and the sox are out of it im rooting for petey personally even though i hate all thats ny,even that taj majal over in flushing meadows which should be condemned as a f***ing eye sore

[schillingouttheks]

I don't believe that he never did them.

 

Then again, I don't believe that any MLB player never did them...just kind of accept it as part of the game now.

[Mr Crunchy]

thats the way i see it kiddo

it is what it is.

they want me to care about millionaires spiking themselves with chemicals?

sorry,i cant

ive been watching the nfl for a long time where you get banned for 4 games for smoking a joint yet they'll inject you with 50ccs of morphine with a side of cortizone to get you on the field with a broken bone protruding from your arm.

this is why i dont like the drug policies of any league.

they dont protect the ballplayers,they dont protect the fans and they dont protect the integrity of the game.

 

guy twists his knee in 6 different knots

they circle him on the bench,drop his drawers and stick a syringe directly into the wound while moving the needle back and forth and side to side to maximize the effect of the numbing agent....

this is ok as far as the league and players unions go?

then this guy goes home after the game,crawls into his whirlpool,puts on his head phones and blazes up a j of skunk weed......

this will get your ass fired for 4 games or in the case of the retarded boys like ricky williams....it will get you a couple years off with no pay..

[rician blast]

I don't believe Pedro for a moment that he never did steroids, and his choice of raising the issue makes me speculate that he might've used them in MLB, too.

 

 

I wouldn't be surprised at all if he did the sh*t, as I wouldn't be surprised with any ballplayer doing PEDs. I don't trust any of them, nor do I care what they inject. Hell, given the $ at stake, the egos at stake, I can't say I wouldn't do it too.

[Jayhawk Bill]

I wouldn't be surprised at all if he did the sh*t' date=' as I wouldn't be surprised with any ballplayer doing PEDs. I don't trust any of them, nor do I care what they inject. Hell, given the $ at stake, the egos at stake, I can't say I wouldn't do it too.[/quote']

 

Well-spoken.

 

It is and was incumbent upon MLB and the MLBPA to put enforcement into place for their rules. The circumstances of the steroid era directly contributed to the prevalence of steroid use, and the players who used merely adapted to circumstances. Those who were clean, if any, might be role models...just as one might view the guy driving 55mph in a 55mph zone of I-95 as a role model.

 

I, however, have been known to exceed speed limits to match traffic flow. Accordingly, I can comment that Pedro probably juiced, but I can't fault him if he did.

[Mr Crunchy]

I, however, have been known to exceed speed limits to match traffic flow. Accordingly, I can comment that Pedro probably juiced, but I can't fault him if he

 

nice analogy william

[rician blast]

OK, the following is a not-so (IMO) hypothetical situation...

 

Imagine being one of the best 10 or so hitters in the game...your numbers are consistently in the 28-32 HR range, you hit around .290-.300 or so and you're a good fielder to boot.

 

Then along comes someone who really couldn't hold your jock...and after several years of middle of the road offensive seasons they hit 30, then 35, then 50, then close to or perhaps more than 60 HRs and garner awards, money, adulation and media attention...and you've learned that the individual's accomplishments were fueled by performance enhancing drugs. At the same time, you learn that more and more players, even the pitchers you are facing, are using something.

 

Seems it would be awfully hard NOT to go down that same path.

[Mr Crunchy]

i do things at work that would make most men cry themselves all the way to a priest for confession daily and i have no moral objections about doing it because my kids need to eat and my wife enjoys electricity.

what i would do for a contract that would financially secure my family and all their offspring for eternity isnt printable material.

lets just say i would do just about anything with the exception of harming family members or innocent children...

injecting hgh in my blood stream doesnt seem like an issue when i think of some of the other things ive done for short money.

[HeadOfSoxNation]

Then along comes someone who really couldn't hold your jock...and after several years of middle of the road offensive seasons they hit 30, then 35, then 50, then close to or perhaps more than 60 HRs and garner awards, money, adulation and media attention.

 

YOU LEAVE BRADY ANDERSON OUT OF THIS!

[YAZMAN]

Pedro did it clean. It was Nelson who did a little juice.

[Mr Crunchy]

luis gonzalez hit 58 hrs 1 year

matty williams was on pace for more than that in 94...as a 2nd baseman i believe?

brady anderson couldnt hit a homerun if he hit the ball twice

he hits 50 1 year,the year before he hit 16? and then 12 the following year?

 

and nobody saw this coming.....donald fehr is a ********** but he knew these#s make contracts explode,bud selig knew this and also had to deal with the strike related misery.

can you blame either of these men based on what their specific responsibilities were?

fehr had to put money in the players pockets

selig had to make sure the owners were getting people in the seats

the both did their jobs very very well based on their speciific responsibilities

now

is it ethical?

[BudLight]

luis gonzalez hit 58 hrs 1 year

matty williams was on pace for more than that in 94...as a 2nd baseman i believe?

brady anderson couldnt hit a homerun if he hit the ball twice

he hits 50 1 year,the year before he hit 16? and then 12 the following year?

 

and nobody saw this coming.....donald fehr is a ********** but he knew these#s make contracts explode,bud selig knew this and also had to deal with the strike related misery.

can you blame either of these men based on what their specific responsibilities were?

fehr had to put money in the players pockets

selig had to make sure the owners were getting people in the seats

the both did their jobs very very well based on their speciific responsibilities

now

is it ethical?

 

IMHO the risk versus the reward here has yet to be seen in its entirety, but the fans sure haven't stopped buying tickets and merchandise that the MLB is making a s*** load from. If the fans were to suddenly revolt because the game is now "tainted" and stopped lining MLB's pockets, then the risk was not worth the reward, however, this does not appear to be the case, so I have to agree with you.

[Mr Crunchy]

the ididarod?

didnt the 12 time winning women who used to felate the huskies die recently?

i'll take jean pierre leduc from yellow knife

no teeth,former nhl prospect,convicted of bestiality but had it overturned proving consensual sex was at hand...

baseball attendence at all levels is at record highs

the damage done,is being swept under the rug and the money is flowing like a bronx cesspool.

[BudLight]

the ididarod?

didnt the 12 time winning women who used to felate the huskies die recently?

i'll take jean pierre leduc from yellow knife

no teeth,former nhl prospect,convicted of bestiality but had it overturned proving consensual sex was at hand...

baseball attendence at all levels is at record highs

the damage done,is being swept under the rug and the money is flowing like a bronx cesspool.

 

Yes, Susan Butcher, she died in 2006, cancer. BTW she was born in Boston, MA

[Mr Crunchy]

how does a native bostonian female end up in bumble f*** alaska on a sled of huskies?

to each his own

evidently like the man who lived with the grizzlies and the woman who lived with the lowland gorilla's she had a calling....to race huskies?

beats the s*** out of me why someone would foresake comfort to horse whip dogs for 3000miles of snow ice and subzero temperatures but i know a girl who sucked cock for the taste....

so to each his own....

[rician blast]

but i know a girl who sucked c#ck for the taste....

so to each his own....

 

A prostitute once said things were so tough, she slept with a guy for free just to stay warm in her bed.

 

"That's nothing," said her fellow streetwalker. "I just blew a guy for free to get a warm meal."