Red Sox Legend Pedro Martinez Discusses Pitching In Steroid Era

Legendary Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez pitched in one of the toughest eras in Major League Baseball — the steroid era.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner was a menace on the mound, striking out 3,154 batters in the 18 seasons he threw the ball to home plate with a career 2.93 ERA.

In a recent interview with GQ Sports’ Joseph Bien-Kahn, Martinez talked about what it was like to pitch during a time when a number of players were believed to have used performance-enhancing drugs, resulting in increased offensive output throughout the game.

“A lot of people asked me, ‘Pedro, how did you do it in the Steroid Era?’ But guess what? I’m so proud of having the opportunity to pitch in the Steroid Era,” Martinez told Bien-Kahn. “Because if there was someone that actually had a reason to use steroids, it might have been a guy like me. But I chose not to.”

The 2004 World Series champion established himself as one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball history despite his unusually small stature for a power pitcher.

“Because if there was someone that actually had a reason to use steroids, it might have been a guy like me.”

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Pedro Martinez on pitching during the steroid era

“A lot of people in baseball, when they see me, they go, ‘Wow, he’s not all that big. He’s not the big monster that he looks like on top of the mound.’ But I was so determined,” Martinez said. “I was, like, playing a World Baseball Classic game every single time I took the mound. I think prioritizing the game, prioritizing your career, giving the importance to your career that it deserves, brings the best out of people.”

Martinez never backed down from a challenge when he was on the mound, it didn’t matter what batter or team he was facing.

“I wanted the biggest challenge. And you saw that. I wanted to beat the best teams. I wanted to beat the best players,” Martinez said. “I wanted to be in the middle of the battle, where you have swords coming for your neck every second. I wanted to live on the edge and that’s why I enjoyed baseball so much.”

Martinez finished his Red Sox career with a 117–37 record, the highest winning percentage any pitcher has had with any team in baseball history.