Pedro Martinez, Boston Red Sox, July 6, 2002 v Detroit Tigers

pedro martinez
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Pedro Goes Five Against Detroit; Allows One Hit, Strikes Out 8 Five-Run First Gives Red Sox Early Cushion Boston Notches MLB-Best 11th Shutout

Saturday, July 6, 2002
Detroit Tigers at Boston Red Sox
Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts

Pedro’s Line

Box Score and play-by-play

Pedro sails into second half
Ian Browne, mlb.com

Pedro Martinez thought his week’s worth of rest wasn’t going to start until Sunday, but it actually came a little earlier and easier than he would have expected. By scoring five runs in the bottom of the first inning in Saturday’s 8-0 rout of the Tigers, it was almost as if the Red Sox offense was saying, “Here you go, Pedro, take it easy today, you deserve it.” … “I believe we are as skilled as any team and if we stay healthy, knock on wood, we are going to be there right beside any others,” Martinez said. “So it doesn’t matter what the Yankees do, I still believe we will be right there with them and the rest of the league.”

Maroth, Tigers spotty in loss to Sox
Mike Petraglia, mlb.com

Being the opposing pitcher when Pedro Martinez starts a game for the Red Sox is never an easy undertaking. When you find out about it at 1 am, just 12 hours before you take the mound, difficult doesn’t do the task justice. But those were the circumstances facing left-hander Mike Maroth Saturday afternoon at Fenway Park as manager Luis Pujols called on the 24-year-old to be a spot starter in the wake of Friday night’s trade of Jeff Weaver to the Yankees.

Red Sox offense in the swing — as Tigers quickly learned
Robert Lee, Providence Journal

The temperature may be dropping, but the Red Sox bats show no signs of cooling off. Boston had 10 hits and 2 home runs yesterday in an 8-0 thumping of the Detroit Tigers. … Surprisingly, Johnny Damon, one of the team’s top hitters, was the only player in the Boston lineup who didn’t get a hit yesterday. … “I believe we are as skilled as any team and if we stay healthy, knock on wood, we are going to be there,” Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez said. “So, it doesn’t matter what the Yankees do. I still believe we will be right there with them and the rest of the league.”

Pedro shows no wear or tear
Sean McAdam, Providence Journal

[F]orget the standings, or the team’s record. The most important measuring stick for the Red Sox is that, as the All-Star break arrives, Pedro Martinez is healthy, a refreshing change from past seasons. … “I feel good,” Martinez said after the Red Sox had blanked the Detroit Tigers, 8-0. “I actually felt better this year than I did in 1999 or 2000, at this point in the season. I feel normal, natural.”

That much has been evident since June 14. Since then, he’s 4-1 with an ERA of 1.50. In three of his last four starts, Martinez hasn’t allowed a run, earned or otherwise. In that span, he’s struck out 42 while walking 3. “I think we can look at Pedro’s season as a whole and see that it has been on a steady progress,” said manager Grady Little. “The graph continues to go upward …”

Moving on — Sox weave way past Maroth and the Tigers
Bob Hohler, Boston Globe

It could come back to hurt them. But for the second time in a week, the Red Sox yesterday received an unexpected assist from the unlikeliest source, the archrival Yankees. Six days after the Bronx trade merchants did the Sox a short-term favor by acquiring Toronto slugger Raul Mondesi minutes before the Blue Jays opened a five-game series against Grady Little’s Gang, Boss Steinbrenner’s crew did it again by picking up Detroit ace Jeff Weaver just hours before he was scheduled to face the Sox.

Rather than Weaver, the Tigers sent rookie lefthander Mike Maroth on scant notice against Pedro Martinez, of all foes. And soon after the Mondesi-less Jays dropped five straight at Fenway Park, the Weaver-free Tigers were no match for Martinez.

Martinez tunes up for break — Ace finishes off Tigers, solid first half
Joe Burris, Boston Globe

Pedro Martinez can pack a decent amount of drama into five innings. Yesterday, the Red Sox starting pitcher frustrated the Detroit Tigers during that span, striking out eight, allowing one hit, hitting one batter, picking another off first, and sparking apparent complaints about the color of his glove strings. … “I feel good, or I feel good enough. The way I’m feeling right now is exactly the way I want to feel. When we put up that five-spot, that was it,” said Martinez, who now has 47 strikeouts and just six walks in his last 40 innings.

Pedro wins laugher
Jeff Horrigan, Boston Herald

Home plate umpire Mike Reilly made Sox ace Pedro Martinez change his glove in the first inning because its red laces didn’t match the black, a rarely enforced violation of baseball’s uniform code. … “It doesn’t matter anymore,” Martinez said. “I’m getting used to some of the things the league or other teams complain about. This time it was my glove. Before it was my shirt. Next time it will be my shoes. The glove doesn’t pitch. I wondered why I’m getting such good results. It’s because they’re looking at my glove instead of my hand with the ball.”

Martinez was delighted with his pickoff of Damion Easley, who reached after being hit by a pitch, at first base in the first inning. “I set him up, just like setting up a hitter. I’m getting old and wiser … and if you get careless, you’re going to get picked off.”

Maroth answers the call
Mike Shalin, Boston Herald

The phone rang in Mike Maroth’s Boston hotel room at about 1 a.m. yesterday. The call came from Fenway Park. Detroit’s rookie lefty learned that he was replacing Jeff Weaver, who had been traded, and that he would pitch against Pedro Martinez and the Red Sox – the team that signed and traded him to the Tigers. The former Sox farmhand probably should have stayed in bed.

Toothless Tigers no match for Martinez: Red Sox start strong, down Detroit, 8-0
Jeff Horrigan, Boston Herald

There’s no denying that these are unique days on Yawkey Way, where staid tradition and an ivory-tower mentality were toppled with the transfer of ownership in February. When John Henry’s group took over, everything suddenly was different. Fans were made to feel appreciated and welcome, the facilities were modernized and honesty was reintroduced on Yawkey Way. As the karma improved, so did the Red Sox’ fate.

One Pedro good enough to deliver a healthy dose
Michael Gee, Boston Herald

The only Red Sox who needs to be cloned is the one who wears No. 45. If Boston had two Pedro Martinezes, fans could spend the All-Star break scheming how to get their hands on World Series tickets. It’d also be the only way P. Martinez could again be credited with a complete game. The Sox, especially including Martinez himself, rather fancy their postseason chances with just one Pedro. Their worry is winding up with no Martinez at all. … “It was the perfect opportunity to get me a little bit of rest,” Martinez said, dripping cheer from every pore.

Sox Accept The Favor
David Heuschkel, Hartford Courant

Many Red Sox players had not heard about the Yankees’ trade late Friday for right-handed starter Jeff Weaver until they got to Fenway Park. The Red Sox were supposed to face Weaver on Saturday. “They did us another favor,” Red Sox infielder Lou Merloni said, alluding to the trade the Yankees made for Raul Mondesi Monday before the Red Sox began a five-game series against Toronto. “They keep doing us favors. They must like us.”

Pedro’s Live For 5 — Strikes Out Eight, Then Starts Break
David Heuschkel, Hartford Courant

For the first time in three seasons, Pedro Martinez will not spend the All-Star break on the disabled list. And unlike the previous two seasons, he made it through the first half without missing a start. Martinez made his 18th start Saturday, equaling the total he made in 2001 when he missed two months because of a sore right shoulder. An early offensive outburst by his teammates allowed Martinez to make an earlier than usual exit. He pitched five scoreless innings as the Red Sox breezed to an 8-0 victory over the Tigers at Fenway Park.

Easy work day for Pedro
Garry Brown, Springfield Union-News

Going into yesterday’s game at Fenway Park, the Boston Red Sox hoped they could make it an easy day for Pedro Martinez, a prize pitcher whose health remains their No. 1 concern. The ideal situation would have been to give him an early lead, let him breeze through five or six innings, then look forward to time off during the All-Star break. Well, that’s exactly how it went.

Pedro ready for R&R
Phil O’Neill, Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Pedro Martinez is a healthy, happy camper looking forward to a nice vacation in his native Dominican Republic at baseball’s traditional halfway point, a time of year that has been nothing but trouble for him the past three seasons. “I’m thinking of the long run, I want to be there for the guys,” said Martinez after pitching five strong innings in an 8-0 waltz past the Tigers yesterday that gave Boston six victories in its last seven games.

Struggling Tigers no match for Martinez, bullpen
Art Davidson, MetroWest Daily

The anticipated matchup between Pedro Martinez and now ex-Detroit ace Jeff Weaver ended when Weaver was traded to the Yankees Friday night. Instead of Weaver, the Tigers were forced to start rookie Mike Maroth. Neither Maroth nor the rest of the Tigers were equal to the task of taking on Martinez.

Pitcher’s glove has hand in handcuffing Detroit
Joe Murphy, Eagle-Tribune

Pedro Martinez, who boosted his record to 11-2 yesterday blanking the Tigers on one hit over five innings, got a kick out of the Tigers batters complaining about his glove. Or more particularly, the laces. The Red Sox ace’s glove laces are red as opposed to the brown glove.

Martinez, trade are too much to handle
Tom Gage, Detroit News

Was it Pedro or the aftershock of the Jeff Weaver trade? A combination dealt the Tigers an 8-0 defeat on Saturday at Fenway Park, ending their three-game winning streak. … “A lot of guys are stunned; a lot of guys are confused,” Robert Fick said about the deal.

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