Pedro Martinez has decided that the Red Sox should be forced to compete for his services next season, just like every other team in MLB.
"I'm just really sad for the fans in New England who had high hopes that at this time I could say, truly, that I was going to stay in Boston..."I don't know, I'm going to have to wait and see (about re-signing with the Sox)...I gave them every single chance I could. ... I gave them every opportunity, every discount I could give them to actually stay in Boston and they never took advantage of it. Didn't even give me an offer."I have two words for Pedro Martinez: Nomar Garciaparra. The Red Sox made Nomar a four year - $60+ million offer at the beginning of last season only to have Nomar turn it down with the expectation that he'd be worth more after the season. Well, it was a buyer's market after the season and the Red Sox offer actually went down.
Of course we know how that turned out -- the Sox tried to get A-Rod and trade Nomar. Nomar got so upset that he called a Boston radio station while on his honeymoon to complain -- only to have the A-Rod deal fall through and Nomar back at square one (now, probably, with some resentment about the whole process).
I wouldn't be surprised if Pedro has a mediocre season, goes on the free agent market and either one of two things happen:
(a) the Yankees, just to insure that the Red Sox don't re-sign him, give Pedro a billion dollar contract -- even though he may well be past his prime, or
(b) Pedro re-signs with the Sox for substantially less than what he would have made eight months earlier if for no other reason than he had a subpar season.
If Pedro really wants to try the free agent market, I say good luck. He may get more money to play somewhere else, but I'm not sure he'll get the benefit of the doubt about everything in another, less rabid baseball town.
