Pedro Martinez delivered so many masterful performances over his career that some absolute gems have been, to a degree, forgotten.
Maybe if the 1999 American League Championship Series panned out better for the Boston Red Sox, the righty’s showing in Game 3 against the New York Yankees would be more revered than it is.
The eventual Hall of Famer was simply stellar in that mid-October meeting between the two rivals, which finished with the Red Sox shellacking the Bronx Bombers 13-1 after Martinez thoroughly outpitched Roger Clemens — who was chased after giving up five runs in two innings.
The game will be shown Thursday night on NESN at 6 p.m. ET. But before you tune in, here are a few things you might’ve forgotten about that game.
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Martinez kept going on strikeout runs
Martinez fanned 12 batters in the win, and plenty of them came in bulk.
After punching out Bernie Williams to end the first inning, Martinez struck out the side in the second for four straight K’s. He ultimately struck out a pair in a row between the third and fourth innings. Martinez did the same in the fourth and fifth, and then again in the sixth.
The Red Sox desperately needed a solid performance from Martinez
Game 3 was the first game of the series to be played in Boston, and it came after the Sox dropped two at Yankee Stadium. While the Red Sox eventually would go on to lose the series, it likely would have happened much more swiftly if not for Martinez’s showing in Game 3.
His final line in the win: Two hits allowed with 12 strikeouts and two walks over seven scoreless innings. He faced 25 batters and needed just 105 pitches to get through the night.
The win was the continuation of sheer dominance in the postseason, and against the Yankees
Martinez really was electric in 1999.
He finished his Cy Young-winning campaign with a 23-4 record, posting a 2.07 ERA. He posted a 2-0 record against New York that season with a 1.69 ERA and 28 strikeouts. One of those outings was a one-hit gem in which he punched out 17.
Plus, he entered that game with a 2-0 record in the postseason, boasting a 1.58 ERA with 19 strikeouts.
