Dennis Martinez Stats & Facts
Dennis Martínez
Position: Pitcher
Bats: Right • Throws: Right
6-1, 160lb (185cm, 72kg)
Born: May 14, 1954 in Granada, Nicaragua
High School: Granada (Granada, Nicaragua)
Debut: September 14, 1976 (13,829th in major league history)
vs. DET 5.2 IP, 4 H, 5 SO, 1 BB, 0 ER, W
Last Game: September 27, 1998
vs. NYM 0.2 IP, 3 H, 1 SO, 0 BB, 1 ER
Full Name: Jose Dennis Martinez
Nicknames: El Presidente
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Nine Players Who Debuted in 1976
Andre Dawson
Dale Murphy
Willie Wilson
Garry Templeton
Dennis Martinez
Bruce Sutter
Rick Sutcliffe
Joaquin Andujar
Mark Fidrych
The Dennis Martinez Teammate Team
C: Rick Dempsey
1B: Andres Galarraga
2B: Delino DeShields
3B: Jim Thome
SS: Cal Ripken Jr.
LF: Tim Raines
CF: Al Bumbry
RF: Manny Ramirez
DH: Eddie Murray
SP: Jim Palmer
SP: Mike Flanagan
SP: Scot McGregor
SP: Greg Maddux
SP: Orel Hershiser
RP: Jeff Reardon
M: Earl Weaver
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Notable Events and Chronology for Dennis Martinez Career
Biography
Developed in the Baltimore system, Dennis Martinez was a star with the Orioles, then overcame alcoholism in a successful comeback with the Expos. Using a basic repertoire of pitches, Martinez was the International League Pitcher of the Year in 1976. He averaged 15 wins a year from 1977 to 1982, excepting an injury-interrupted 1980. From 1983 to 1985, he was simply a hard thrower. Traded to Montreal in 1986, he learned to cope with alcoholism, but still found himself out of a job in May 1987. Given a last chance by Montreal, Martinez led NL pitchers with a .733 winning percentage (11-4) in 1987 and became the staff ace by pitching, not just throwing. His 16-7 record (3.18 ERA) in 1989 helped the Expos contend for the title.@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@
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Factoids, Quotes, Milestones and Odd Facts
Played For
Baltimore Orioles (1976-1986)
Montreal Expos (1986-1993)
Cleveland Indians (1994-1996)
Seattle Mariners (1997)
Atlanta Braves (1998)
Similar: Jerry Reuss, Doyle Alexander
Linked: Martinez broke Juan Marichal’s record for most wins by a Latin American pitcher. Marichal had won 243 games.
Best Season, 1991
He should have won a few more games than the 14 he received credit for, but he failed to get run support from his teammates. Martinez posted a 2.39 ERA, nine complete games, five shutouts, and allowed just nine homers in more than 220 innings.
All-Star Selections
No-Hit Fame
7/28/1991: For MON (N) vs. LA (N), 2-0 at LA. 9 innings pitched.
Post-Season Appearances
1979 American League Championship Series
1995 American League Divisional Series
1995 World Series
1998 National League Championship Series
Scouting Report
“Has an explosive fastball that is clocked at 88-90 MPH, a sharp curve, a fast slider and an excellent change-up.” — from the 1984 Scouting Report
Where He Played: Pitcher, reliever at first, and then starter.
Big League Debut: September 14, 1976
Martinez pitched the last 5 2/3 innings in relief and got the victory in a 9-7 Orioles’ win over the Tigers in Baltimore. The first three batters he faced: Mickey Stanley, Bill Freehan, and Chuck Scrivener, all struck out. Rusty Staub collected the first hit off Martinez.
Post-Season Notes
Martinez was the last of five pitchers that Earl Weaver used in the top of the ninth inning of Game Seven of the 1979 World Series. The Pirates still won, 4-1.
Feats: Martinez became the 13th pitcher to hurl a perfect game, on July 28, 1991, for the Montreal Expos against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Martinez struck out five batters in the masterpiece… On September 28, 1993, Martinez won his 100th game for the Expos, giving him at least 100 wins in both the American and National Leagues. Others to do that are Cy Young, Al Orth, Jim Bunning, Ferguson Jenkins, Nolan Ryan, and Gaylord Perry.
Milestones
On June 18, 1993, Martinez won his 200th game, a 2-1 defeat of the Atlanta Braves.
Transactions
December 10, 1973: Signed by the Baltimore Orioles as an amateur free agent; June 16, 1986: Traded by the Baltimore Orioles with a player to be named later to the Montreal Expos for a player to be named later. The Baltimore Orioles sent John Stefero (December 8, 1986) to the Montreal Expos to complete the trade. The Montreal Expos sent Rene Gonzales (December 16, 1986) to the Baltimore Orioles to complete the trade; November 12, 1986: Granted Free Agency; May 6, 1987: Signed as a Free Agent with the Montreal Expos; November 9, 1987: Granted Free Agency; December 18, 1987: Signed as a Free Agent with the Montreal Expos; October 25, 1993: Granted Free Agency; December 2, 1993: Signed as a Free Agent with the Cleveland Indians; November 18, 1996: Granted Free Agency; February 20, 1997: Signed as a Free Agent with the Seattle Mariners; May 24, 1997: Released by the Seattle Mariners; January 30, 1998: Signed as a Free Agent with the Atlanta Braves; November 2, 1998: Granted Free Agency.
The Expos had agreed to deal Martinez to the Atlanta Braves for the stretch-run in 1993, but the pitcher vetoed the deal. Instead, he remained with Montreal and won four of his last five decisions. In the off-season, he signed a lucrative free-agent contract with the Cleveland Indians.
Matchup Data
Martinez was 19-6 with a 2.37 ERA in games he pitched in Atlanta, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia.
All-Star Selections
1990 NL
1991 NL
1992 NL
1995 AL
Replaced
Martinez and Scott McGregor both joined the Orioles starting rotation in 1978, in place of Rudy May and Ross Grimsley, both of whom had went to Montreal, one in a trade, the other via free agency.
Replaced By
Martinez was replaced by Bartolo Colon and Jaret Wright on the Indians’ rotation in 1997. He was given nine starts with the M’s in 1997, but didn’t stick, and in 1998 with the Braves he was primarily a reliever.
Best Strength as a Player
Guts, and a sinking fastball.
Largest Weakness as a Player
Lack of opportunity, but that wasn;t his fault early in his career.
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