A lot of the most-dominant pitchers are impressive physical specimens. Think Roger Clemens or the towering Randy Johnson. Then, there's Pedro Martinez.
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The Dominican Republic native was listed at 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds — both of which smell of slight exaggeration. And yet, few baseball players were able to dominate from the mound like the eight-time All-Star and Baseball Hall of Fame inductee.
If you carve through MLB like Martinez did, you tend to make a lot of cash. So what's his net worth? It's time to look past the body measurements and into the bank account.
Early Life & Baseball Career
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Pedro Jaime Martinez was born the fifth of six children to Leopoldina Martinez in Manoguayabo — a suburb of Santo Domingo. One of his sibling was his older brother Ramon Martinez.
Ramon was a solid pitcher, making one All-Star Game and lasting in MLB for 14 seasons. However, this is about Pedro, because, with all due respect to Ramon, his career pales in comparison to his younger brother.
The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Martinez as an international free agent in 1988 when he was still a teenager — the typical course of events for a player outside the United States. Pedro made his pitching debut in 1992 as a 20-year-old reliever. He also made his debut as a starting pitcher that year, though he mostly worked in relief for the Dodgers. Manager Tommy Lasorda was worried about a player his size lasting as a starter.
Martinez was traded to the Montreal Expos prior to the 1994 season, and the Expos were willing to let Pedro do his thing as a starter. It paid off in a big-time way. Martinez came close to throwing a perfect game in both 1994 and 1995, and in 1996 he made his first All-Star Game.
In 1997, Pedro became the only Expo (R.I.P.) to win the Cy Young award. Despite the concerns about his size, Martinez led Major League Baseball with 13 complete games and posted a stellar 1.90 ERA to lead the majors.
Pedro was a pending free agent prior to the 1998 season, so the Expos (always the thrifty franchise) traded him to the Boston Red Sox, who proceeded to sign him to a new six-year contract.
In 1999, Martinez had one of the best seasons in baseball history, winning the pitching triple crown by leading the American League in ERA, wins, and strikeouts. He finished second in the MVP award that year, and took home another Cy Young award in 2000 with a minuscule 1.74 ERA.
It took a little while for Martinez and the Boston Red Sox to get where they wanted in the postseason, though. You may recall the franchise had a bit of a World Series drought. In 2003, things weren't so good, as Pedro was mostly remembered for throwing Don Zimmer — then a coach for the New York Yankees — to the ground and also being left in too long by Grady Little.
Finally, in 2004, Martinez became a World Series champion. He threw seven innings of shutout baseball against the St. Louis Cardinals to help the Red Sox win the World Series, the franchise's first since 1918.
This would prove to be Martinez's last season with the Red Sox. He signed a four-year deal with the New York Mets, and he was still a solid pitcher in his first two seasons with the team. He made two more All-Star teams and even led the majors in WHIP once.
Martinez had a last hurrah in 2009 with the Philadelphia Phillies, making nine starts and posting a 3.63 ERA. He also got to meet the Yankees in the 2009 World Series, but it did not go well for him.
Pedro Martinez Net Worth
Former professional baseball player Pedro Martinez has made plenty of cash since he retired. He has worked for MLB Network and TBS, where his personality has gotten to shine.
As one of the best pitchers to ever take the mound, Pedro was a shoe-in to make the Hall of Fame, which he did in 2015.
In his personal life, his family has found quite a bit of success as well. Martinez is married to former ESPN Deportes sideline reporter Carolina Cruz and his son Pedro Martinez Jr. was signed by the Detroit Tigers in 2017.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Martinez has an estimated net worth of $70 million. That only seems like one dollar for every strikeout he ever racked up.
