The Dominican went 19-7 with a .289 ERA and was second in Cy Young voting, but he would shatter that year the next two seasons. In 1999, for the first and only time in his career, Martinez would lead the AL in Wins (23), which he had against only four losses. He led the AL in ERA (2.07), Strikeouts (313), FIP (1.39), WHIP (0.923) and SO/BB (8.46). Martinez won the Cy Young and finished second in MVP voting. While he finished "only" fifth in MVP voting in 2000, his second Cy Young with the BoSox was just as impressive. Martinez went 18-6 with an AL-leading 1.74 ERA, 284 Strikeouts, 2.17 FIP, 0.737 WHIP, and an 8.88 SO/BB. The Red Sox would make the playoffs in both 1998 and 1999, and he went 3-0, allowing only three Runs over 24 Innings.
2001 wasn’t great for Martinez as he a torn rotator cuff kept him out of the bulk of the year, but he rebounded in 2002, going 20-4, and again leading the AL with ERA (2.26), Strikeouts (239), FIP (2.24), WHIP (0.923) and SO/BB (5.98). Arguably, he was robbed of the Cy Young when he lost to Oakland’s Barry Zito. 2003 saw Martinez finish third in Cy Young voting, again winning the ERA Title (2.22), and was first in FIP (2.21) and WHIP (1.039).
Martinez's 2004 was his weakest with a 3.90 ERA, but in many ways, it was the most memorable. He would help the Red Sox end the curse and win the World Series. He won a Game in the Fall Classic and allowed no runs over seven innings.
He would join the New York Mets after as a Free Agent, and he would leave Fenway with a spectacular record of 117-37 with 1,683 Strikeouts, a 2.52 ERA, and a 0.978 WHIP.
Martinez entered the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, and the Red Sox would retire his number 45 that year. The BoSox inducted Martinez into their Hall of Fame in 2014.
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