ST. LOUIS -- When he was a Los Angeles Dodgers prospect, not much more than Ramon Martinez's little brother, Pedro Martinez sat in the dugout charting pitches during a rookie league series in Salt Lake City.
His team was getting pummeled. The more runs the opposition racked up, the hotter Martinez got.
"He turned and said something I cannot repeat." said Red Sox pitching coach David Wallace, who was there that day as a Dodgers coordinator.
"Well, the next day, Pedro struck out 15. The first batter had to hit the dirt. It was unbelievable. That's innate ability. You don't teach that. That's just something that's inside."
That something inside is still there. But the arm? The promise? The future? It's different now.
Last night, the rain stopped just in time to roll back the tarp at Busch Stadium and prepare the mound for Game 3 of the World Series.
This was the Cardinals" first home Series game since 1987, an important bit of history - especially since the Cardinals look to be in short supply of such games at the rate they"re going.
But it was also Martinez's first World Series game - a fitting reward for a pitcher who has the best winning percentage in major league history for anyone with more than 200 starts.
Then, swift as the Mississippi current after a storm, came the taunts:
"Pedro, Pedro, Pedro!'
Even here in the friendly heartland, Martinez was the subject of lusty derision. He's especially vulnerable to it now, when his mail-slot fastball and leather-scorching velocity have started to forsake him. No longer does he have the steady, reliable and overwhelming arsenal he once owned.
What they say about Martinez now is that he saves his bullets. No longer able to dominate batters, he instead seeks ways to minimize the damage.
Hence the early trouble last night as Martinez walked Larry Walker and Scott Rolen after Albert Pujols jammed a single at third baseman Bill Mueller.
Bases loaded, the Cardinals were desperate to gain a foothold in this Series: Why not take advantage of Martinez, the great pitcher whose career is at a crossroads at the exact time he has reached the pinnacle of anyone's baseball career?
A double play ended the trouble, not Martinez's arm. The Cardinals" sudden base-running incompetence would help Martinez, who eventually found his groove, hit his spots and racked up six strikeouts and 17 consecutive outs in seven innings of work.
