Among players who wore number 45 for the Boston Red Sox: Scott Cooper, Ken Brett and the immortal Dick Pole. But it was most memorably Pedro Martinez’s number, and the Red Sox announced today that whey will retire it in his honor next month.
The ceremony will be July 28, before Boston’s game against the Chicago White Sox. This will be two days after Martinez is inducted to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, so he’ll be in the general neighborhood.
Martinez wore number 45 for the Red Sox from 1998 through 2004. Not a ton of years in Boston, but they were among the best years any starting pitcher has ever had. In that time Martinez went 117-37 with a 2.52 ERA and 1,683 strikeouts against 309 walks in 1,383.2 innings. And remember, that was the height of the biggest offensive era the game has ever seen, giving him an ERA+ of 190, which is mind-boggling.
