In an alternate universe, Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez’s big-league career could have ended as a World Series champion in the pinstripes. The vision, as absurd as it sounds, almost became a reality, save for one major demand. Ahead of the second game of the AL Division Series, Martinez spoke about how he almost joined the New York Yankees despite being the face of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry during his time in Boston.

“I almost went to the Yankees. The only problem I had with going to the Yankees at that point was that the GM, Brian Cashman, asked me to take three outings in the minor leagues, and then they were going to guarantee me a big-league contract,” said Martinez on TNT Sports U.S.

“Probably worth a lot more money than Philly. And I said, man, I’m not a minor leaguer. You sign me as a big-league player, you give me a contract, I go to the minor leagues, I do whatever you ask me to do in the minor leagues, and then I come up. But I leave my house as a big leaguer because I promised myself I would never go back to the minor leagues. I never did.

Philadelphia took a chance, and we almost really made it big. But asking me to go to the minor leagues? No, no, that’s a no-no. No, Cashy. I was never in the minor leagues since I left.”

Though Pedro Martinez never wore the pinstripes, he had earlier revealed that he was a Yankees fan when he was young. He had even asked the Montreal Expos three times to trade him to the New York Yankees.

“I asked for a trade three times to play with the New York Yankees,” Martinez revealed in 2024, per the Bleacher Report.

After debuting with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Martinez played four seasons for the Expos from 1994 to 1997 before he was ultimately traded to Boston. However, before he went to Boston, Brian Cashman, the then-assistant GM of the Yankees, attempted to acquire him. But the Expos ownership did not agree.

Martinez spent 7 of his 18-season-long MLB career playing for the Red Sox. He also wears a Red Sox cap on his plaque at the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Martinez was part of their 2004 World Series-winning team, which broke the Curse of the Bambino.

He posted a 2.52 career ERA and a 117-37 record with 1,683 strikeouts in 203 outings for the Red Sox.

While playing for Boston (1998-2004), Martinez embraced the culture, especially the rivalry with the Yankees.

The rivalry peaked during Game 3 of the 2003 ALCS, held at Fenway Park, when Martinez threw inside to Yankees batter Karim Garcia, prompting verbal warnings. The situation escalated from there, as Roger Clemens retaliated.

Clemens threw a high-and-inside pitch to Manny Ramirez, which sparked a bench-clearing brawl. During the clash, Yankees’ bench coach Don Zimmer charged at Martinez.

In return, Martinez pushed the Yankees’ coach to the ground. However, both later regretted their actions.

At the time, though, the intensity of the rivalry ran deep.

Yet when he became a free agent in 2004, George Steinbrenner personally met him. After the meeting, Steinbrenner reportedly entrusted Cashman with any future negotiations, and the Yankees ultimately did not sign him.

While they opted to sign other pitchers like Randy Johnson and Carl Pavano, Martinez eventually went with the New York Mets and played for them till 2008.

Before joining the Phillies in 2009, the Yankees wanted to sign Martinez for a second time. However, GM Brian Cashman did not offer him a major league contract from the get-go, probably for his negative WAR, 5-6 win-loss record, and 5.61 ERA. But the player flatly declined.

He subsequently signed a one-year, $2 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies to end his career.

It would have definitely been a scene if Pedro Martinez wore the pinstripes after such heated on-the-field rivalry.