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Reactions: AL Starter Wells or Martinez? CNNSI.com users say BoomerPosted: Wednesday July 05, 2000 04:16 PM
CNNSI.com users were asked who they would choose to start for the American League in the All-Star Game if they were Joe Torre: Boston's Pedro Martinez or Toronto's David Wells. Martinez, who is eligible to come off the disabled list during the All-Star break, is 9-3 with a 1.44 ERA. Wells' ERA is nearly two runs higher, but he has been a workhorse and is the majors' only 14-game winner. Most felt that Wells should get the nod for the mid-summer classic, as he's considered more important to his team and has shown consistency over the entire first half of the season. Here's a sample of the responses we received: Really this is a no-brainer. With much respect to Wells, you have to go with the best pitcher in baseball--Pedro! You have to figure that he would be in double-digit wins if not for injuries. He leads Wells in all stats areas, except for wins. When Pedro wins, it's 2-0 and when Wells wins, it's 7-5. Sorry Boomer...Pedro is still the man!!
Would be a bigger travesty than when Fred Hickman voted for Allen Iverson as the NBA's MVP!
Easy decision. David Wells is your starter, Mr. Torre. Fourteen wins against two losses, Blue Jays in first place and they would not be there without Wells. The starter is awarded on the current season and Wells has simply been the best to date. Sorry SI, Wells should have been your cover boy on your baseball issue, not Martinez.
Pedro Martinez is the best pitcher in baseball, hands down. No matter what the numbers say, Pedro should start for the AL, because he is simply better than David Wells. 14 wins are much less impressive than a 1.44 ERA and a league-leading number of K's.
The All-Star Game Pitcher should be based on the starter who was the best for the first half. Pedro is the best pitcher in the AL, but not the first half. Wells has been a horse for the Jays. He has logged the innings and has been the losing streak stopper many times this year due to the poor fourth and fifth starters on Toronto staff. He has also gone out every night and faced the ace of the opposing team, so he has not been handed any easy wins. Lastly, Joe Torre loves the guy! Forget about it!
I think the dominance of Pedro speaks for itself. He should be offered the chance to start but he would be irresponsible to his team if he did. Coming off an injury, he should take advantage of the extra days and rest.
Martinez shouldn't even be playing, never mind starting! He and the Red Sox should take advantage of the All-Star break to extend his recuperation period, ensuring he is in top form for the second half of the season. Why rush back? Besides, Boomer has earned the All-Star start, so it's all a moot point anyway!
Pedro should start the All-Star game because... How do I say this? He's a WAY better pitcher! Anyone would win 14 games with the support Wells gets. Pedro can dominate those first three innings like Tiger on Pebble Beach.
How would anyone in his or her right mind figure that Pedro should start over Boomer? Wells has 14 wins, 15 when he beats the Expos later in the week, and is keeping the Jays in first with his solid outings every start. On the other hand, Pedro does have the miniscule ERA but he has been shaky in past starts, notably against the Jays when he left with a no-decision. I believe Torre will do the right thing and hand the All-Star game start to Boomer.
Who is having the best season so far? Who has more wins than any other pitcher in either league? Who is second in ERA? Who is healthy? What decision is there? Boomer is the man.
David Wells should definitely get the start over Pedro Martinez in the All-Star game. Wells may have a higher ERA but he also has five more wins than Pedro to this point, which is more than enough justification. Aside from the main stats though, Wells has been able to win the games that matter, propelling the Jays into first place in the division. Pedro has lost games against the both the Blue Jays and the Yankees contributing to Boston's recent decline in the standings. This is a no-brainer for Joe Torre, David Wells should start.
David Wells should start the All-Star game. And there should be no doubt about it. Not only has he been pitching great this year (going 14-2) with a game to spare before the All-Star break, he is also an athlete with good values. He is not money-minded as most of the players in sports including baseball. He works his butt off every game for Toronto.
Well, I'm a Toronto fan, but I would still put Pedro in. Wells has gotten generous run support over all of his starts, and Pedro on the other hand, needs no such support with his miniscule ERA. An argument could be made that there will be plenty of run support, it being the All-Star game, but Pedro is probably our safest bet. Pedro also has 43 more strikeouts than David Wells, which should play a factor.
I think Wells should get the nod because he has consistently pitched well up to the break while Martinez has tailed off of late giving up key hits in close situations when he would normally have shut down the opposition.
Going by the number one pitching stat, Pedro is definitely the better of the two. Wells has received a lot of offensive support and it seems he is often matched against the opponents No. 2 or No. 3 starter whereas Pedro usually faces the ace of the opponent's staff. With a bit of luck, Pedro's record could match that of Wells (even though he has missed starts because of injury). However, I would pick Wells because of his importance to the Blue Jays. It's easy to see that without his performance, the Jays are just another team in the middle of the wild-card race. I've been a long time Jays fan so I believe Wells should start next week because of his charisma and to rub it in the face of the Yankees, who gave up on him two years ago for some whiny clown named Roger.
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