While Pedro Martinez's audition at the World Baseball Classic was unexpectedly cut short by the Dominican Republic's elimination at the hands of the Netherlands, hopefully his six scoreless innings of relief piqued the interest of a GM willing to take a flyer on the three-time Cy Young Award winner. His former Mets manager Jerry Manuel has already went on record saying that he is not interested in bringing Martinez back to the New York, however, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti expressed some interest in a recent LA Times interview. Colletti said, "He's someone we're curious about." If and when that curiosity turns into courtship, only time will tell. Martinez still has the guile and tenacity to make himself effective against Major League hitters, but he has to prove that he is fully recovered from his arm injury and can withstand the rigors of an entire Major League season. Martinez has said that he is looking for much more than what Tom Glavine accepted, which was $1 million for the upcoming season. With rosters and payrolls close to being set, Martinez will likely have to come down on his asking price for teams to take a chance on him for 2009.
