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02/16/2003 Archived Entry: "Today's MLB News: Pedro Wants Sox to Pick Up Option"
Today's MLB News by Eric Gartman
Pedro Martinez is confident the Boston Red Sox will pick up his $17.5 million option for 2004 but said Saturday that will be his last season with the team if they wait
until November to do it.
We all know how good a pitcher Pedro Martinez is. In five seasons with the Red Sox he is 87-24, he has won two Cy Young Awards and led the AL in ERA and strikeouts three times each. The only real question is health. He saw limited duty in 2001, but was back last year, with a 20-4 record and a major-league leading 2.26 ERA. If he's healthy, he is the best pitcher in AL, if not the majors. Furthermore, the money he's earned so far is not that much less than his option year: Martinez earned $14 million last year, and will get $15 million this year. Another 2.5 million isn't much more. The questions about his shoulder have seemingly been answered by his strong performance last year. He may not pitch much more than 200-225 innings anymore, but otherwise he is still just as good. He is the heart and soul of the team, and the fans love him. The Sox should wake up and exercise his option. That they havent done so already is surprising.
Replies: 1 Comment
The Sox are in a no win position. The prudent thing is NOT to pick up the option. There is 1 clear reason they have not as yet. They are unsure if his arm will hold up, and have reason to believe it may NOT. Yet if they don't pick it up they risk alienating the best pitcher in baseball in the last decade. I agree with Eric though, they gotta risk it and sign him.
Posted by Bart Ewing @ 02/21/2003 10:56 PM EST
