K-Dro

You knew it would be this good, right?

I certainly didn't.

As Pedro Martinez was putting the finishing touches on his latest masterpiece, a 3-1 complete game 2 hitter, I chuckled at the thought that in this blog I once compared Pedro Martinez to George Foster. But now, he's being compared to Doc Gooden, and rightly so. Not the Gooden who wasted his potential on drugs and other vices, but the one that was New York Met baseball in 1984 and 1985. Just from watching the ninth inning in the comfort of my home you can tell that there's a different feel in the air than most nights...certainly different than the morgue that Shea had become from 2002-2004. Not only is attendance up when Pedro pitches, I've noticed that the hits on this blog have gone on the upturn. I certainly don't attribute it to my acerbic wit and the way I make the words dance off the page (I wish). That's the Pedro effect.

Pedro Martinez is the rare Met who has equaled or bettered his success from his days in another uniform. You've had George Foster go from .295/22/90 in 1981 to .247/13/70 in 1982, with 43 more games! You've had Bobby Bonilla go from .302/18/100 in 1991 to .249/19/70 in 1992. Tom Glavine in 2002: 18-11, 2.96 ERA. Tom Glavine in 2003: 9-14, 4.52 ERA. Vince Coleman in 1990: .292 and 77 stolen bases. Vince Coleman in 1991-1993: ligaments turn to wet noodles. On and on seemingly. And with Pedro there were huge warning signs about his arm seemingly one pitch away from falling off.

Well it still could be one pitch away from falling off. But right now, it is not his arm we have to worry about, and not even his hip, which was inflamed earlier this season. It's his back.

From carrying the rest of the team.