Pedro Martinez

Dominican baseball pitcher widely considered one of the greatest pitchers in MLB history, known for his dominant peak years in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Pedro Jaime Martinez was born in Manoguayabo, Dominican Republic in 1971. Los Angeles Dodgers signed him in 1988 as an international free agent. His 18-season career produced 219 wins, 3,154 strikeouts and three Cy Young Awards (1997, 1999, 2000). He won the World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2004 — part of the team that reversed the supposed Curse of the Bambino by coming back from 3-0 down against the New York Yankees in the ALCS. His adjusted ERA across his career is the lowest in the history of professional baseball — his 1999 and 2000 seasons for Boston are among the two or three most dominant pitching seasons in baseball history. In 2000 he went 18-6 with a 1.74 ERA and 284 strikeouts — in the most offensively prolific era in baseball history. His 2000 AL Cy Young vote was unanimous. He was named to eight All-Star games. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, his first year of eligibility, receiving 91.1% of votes. His combination of an elite fastball, devastating changeup and curveball thrown with exceptional command made him effectively unplayable at his peak — he allowed fewer baserunners per inning than virtually any pitcher since records were reliably kept.

Power pitcher with exceptional changeup, pinpoint control, fierce competitor

One of the greatest pitchers ever, dominated hitters in offensive era

• World Series Champion (2004)
• Cy Young Award 3x
• Hall of Fame (2015)
• 8x All-Star