'I Was Pretty Much Let Go'
More Revisionist History from the Disingenuous Diva

"Does he expect to be booed? 'I hope not, but there are some people... I don't know how they feel,' Martinez told Newsday yesterday. 'Knowing my fans and the relationship I had and how much I expressed how I wanted to stay... it wasn't my choice. I wasn't given the choice to actually think about, I was pretty much let go.' " -- 5.3.06, Pedro Martinez: New York Newsday

Pedro Could Feel the
Heat in Boston

Some Nuggets from Gammons:

Comments from ESPN's Peter Gammons on WEEI's Big Show Today (Audio Here):

On the Damon reaction at Fenway:

“I thought it went a little bit over the top. I don’t understand the mentality of someone spending hours at home making up some obscene sign. It wasn’t like he was an electric personality here… he was very popular here but it wasn’t like Pedro or Clemens, he didn’t depart simply because of money. It was a prolonged kind of a mixed-up negotiation. And the one thing about him, he always played hard, he played hurt, and he was always accountable. I don’t know, I just didn’t think it needed to be quite so insane.

"I sit down there and I listen to people stand up there with their kids on either side of them scream obscenities at Derek Jeter like their big people because they’ve got a fence in between them and the field so, I guess if that’s what makes people happy… I think sports can be fun too. There are a lot of people that don’t think it’s fun… I just thought that, in Damon’s case, one thing about him… I like Roger a lot, but he did say that, he did complain about things like carrying his bags, and he did go to Toronto and say that he loved it because it was so much like Houston, and Pedro left town with guns blazing because of his relationship with Schilling. But I just thought that the way Damon was always very respectful of the fans… I did not think taking out that ad in the Globe was phony in the least, I think Johnny’s pretty genuine, but that’s it, he’s moved on and I’ll say this, I found this really interesting, Don Mattingly made, and this surprised me, he said to me ‘you know, Damon has really changed our team’… this team had become so businesslike, and so uptight the last three years, Damon is sort of goofy, he comes in everyday with a big smile on his face, he’s up to something, he’s always accountable to the media. He said ‘he’s really changed our personality for the better.’ And if that’s true, and I believe Mattingly’s got a pretty good finger on that team as hitting coach and future manager, then I think that’s pretty interesting. I think the Yankees got more than they thought they got when they signed him."

On Pedro coming back to Fenway:

"I think there’s more hostility towards Pedro [than Damon]. And it’s partly because he’s an electric personality. I think that Pedro will get a pretty rough [reception]. Now he’s not pitching for the Yankees, and that’s a big difference. They won’t have people standing there with their kids and screaming obscenities at Jose Reyes, but I think Pedro will take a lot of heat here. I’ll be interested to see how he is. I think he’s gonna be a little testy when he comes back here."

Gammons also said the Red Sox are worried about the double play combination's offense. If Alex Gonzalez continues to struggle, Gammons thinks the Sox will call up Dustin Pedroia to play some second base and shortstop, and give them a little offense.

Extra Bases: Wells, Riske, Kapler, and Coco Making Progress