Pedro Martinez, who had his best years with the Boston Red Sox, was one of the best pitchers in the history of MLB.
His 1999 season was perhaps the single most impressive one in the game, and it’s really underrated when people discuss the best yearly performances by a hurler.
In 213.1 innings, he had a 23-4 record (!) and a 2.07 ERA, with a 1.39 Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP).
That year, he struck out 313 hitters, or 13.20 per nine innings.
That number, back then, was awfully impressively, at the top of the league.
Seasons with 280+ K, 11.0+ K/9, & sub-2.10 ERA:
Pedro Martinez 1997
Pedro Martinez 1999
Pedro Martinez 2000— Hardball Stats (@HardballStats) March 29, 2016
In any case, Pedro, who is, deservingly, a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame, tweeted one of the best memories of that 1999 season, back when he was with the Red Sox.
He Was On Fire
“Boy, remember the time I lit up the Yankees for 17 Strikeouts? Fuego!”, he tweeted, with a video of him absolutely manhandling his rival.
Boy, remember the time I lit up the Yankees for 17 Strikeouts? 🔥 Fuego! pic.twitter.com/VhULu1sfCO
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) January 24, 2022
It was September 10, and the Yankees and Red Sox were fighting for the AL East crown at the time.
The game was at Yankee Stadium: over his career, Yankees’ fans were not so kind to Pedro.
The Yankees were in the middle of their late-90s dynasty, one that saw them win four World Series in a span of five years (1996 to 2000).
Chili Davis hit a solo home run in the second inning.
After that, Pedro was unhittable: he retired the next 22 hitters, 15 via the strikeout.
Overall, he ended up fanning 17 Yankees, the highest mark in his career in a single game.
He didn’t hand out any free passes either and defeated Andy Pettitte at his home, as the Red Sox won 3-1.
Martinez threw a complete game that night.
The Yankees ended up winning the division and defeated Boston in the ALCS, 4-1.
Who won the game for Boston?
None other than Pedro, who dominated his arch rivals for seven scoreless innings in which he whiffed 12.
Pedro Vs. The Yankees: A Beautiful Hate Story
It was an exciting chapter in an otherwise spicy career against the Yankees.
Martinez had 32 regular season starts against the Yankees, in which he covered 216.2 innings.
His 3.20 ERA wasn’t the lowest he had against a specific foe, but it was awfully impressive considering the large sample size.
He allowed just 170 hits over those 216.2 innings, and struck out 261 with a 1.075 WHIP.
The rivalry extended to the postseason, in which Martinez blew a crucial three-run lead in the eighth inning of Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS, the one that New York ended up winning after Aaron Boone’s walk-off home run against Tim Wakefield.
That series marked the birth of the “Who’s Your Daddy?” chants by Yankees fans at Martinez, ones that Boston would avenge a year later with David Ortiz and the “Who’s Your Papi?” phrase.
That 17-strikeout game against the Yankees, though, was the epitome of an ace-like performance.
Yankees batters looked foolish at times, and Pedro was as sharp as he ever was that night.
He won the Cy Young award that year.
It was prime Pedro: he was just 27 years old.
Those were the good old days of the Yankees–Red Sox rivalry, and Martinez was on top of the action.
