Pedro- Mistake or Great Signing?

In the offseason after the 2004 season, Omar Minaya, GM of the NY Mets, signed Pedro Martinez to a 4-year, $53 million dollar deal. There is no denying Pedro in his prime was one of, if not the, best pitcher of all time. However let's take a look at his time as a Met. In 2005, his first year with theMets, Martinez posted a 15-8 record with a 2.82 ERA, 208 strikeouts, and a league-leading 0.95 WHIP. Since that time Pedro has been plagued with injuries and has pitched only 46 games in the past 3 years (most of them pitching while injured). There is no denying that since 2006 Pedro has been merely a shell of his former self. He has put up ERA's of 4.48, 2.57 (5 games), and 5.47(season is not over yet). This is obviously not good at all and not worth the money he is getting. This brings up to the main question: (which may obviously change is Pedro is very effective for the rest of the seeason and helps the Mets to a World Series Championship) Was the Pedro signing a mistake for the Mets?

Based purely on the numbers the answer is no. He had a great year in 2005 and posted a better ERA and WHIP than Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter. However since then his injuries have caused him to miss significant time and for the most part be ineffective when he did pitch. But who would say paying $53 million for 1 great year and 3 years (not full seasons) of poor pitching is a great singing? The answer is me.

Pedro Martinez's signing was a great signing for several reasons. The first reason being his influence on other players on the team. He is one of the smartest pitchers in the game and was able to pass on knowledge to other pitchers on the team which helped them develop. He also is a great clubhouse guy and always seems to be smiling and joking around.

The second reason being that that signing showed other players in the MLB that the Mets were serious about winning which allowed them to go out and sign players like Billy Wagner, Moises Alou, and the best CF in baseball, Carlos Beltran. I also have the gut feeling that if the Mets were not serious about winning, Johan Santana probably would not have approved a trade to come here.

The third and arguably the most important reason being the influence on the international market. Pedro is a huge figure in Latin American countries, especially in his native country of Dominican Replublic. A short list of some of the international signings the Mets have made since the Pedro signing: Fernando Martinez, Deolis Guerra, Wilmer Flores, Francisco Pena, Ruben Tejada, Jefry Marte, and Ceaser Puello. Many Mets fan and non-Mets fans alike may not recognize any of these names outside of Fernando Martinez. All of these players are under the age of 20 with tons of potential. These players turned down much more lucrative deals from other teams to sign with the Mets. This is the "Pedro Effect." Deolis Guerra was one of the four prospects dealt to the Twins for Santana. Fernando Martinez is the Mets number 1 prospect. Wilmer Flores, in some people's view, has even overcome Fernando as the top prospect. These players are young with tons of upside and could become star players in the future. These players also could be dealt in trades for impact players. The Mets are so high on some of these players they have refused to include them in deals for players like Santana.

Pedro Martinez's signing was a great one.