Pedro has gone "Old School"

Admit it - you are rooting for Pedro Martinez to succeed in Philly, even just a little bit.

Last night Pedro went old school and pitched like the future Hall of Famer that we remember from the old days outdueling San Francisco Giants ace Tim Lincecum Thursday night to give the Phils a 2-1 win. Over seven innings, the stingy 37-year-old allowed just five hits and one run while striking out nine - his most since his last start in a Mets uniform on September 25th of 2008.

After the first pitch of the game - a solo homer by the immortal Eugenio Velez - Martinez was electric. His pitch total was economical throwing a paltry 87 pitches. Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge cleaned everything up in a game which lasted just 2:08.

By the way, Lincecum was equally up to task, striking out 11 and walking only one in his seven innings on the night. Of the four hits he allowed, one was a solo homer to Jayson Werth while the other was an RBI double to Ryan Howard. That's the definition of a hard-luck loss for the 13-5 Lincecum, who has struck eight or more batters 19 times this season and has to be considered the front-runner for the NL Cy Young Award.

But Thursday was about Martinez, who is providing a huge boost for the Phillies as they look to extend their lead in the National League East. So far, Martinez is 3-0 with a 3.52 ERA in six starts. His control has been amazing, walking just three in 23 innings while striking out 23.

He’s gone old school on us and is reminding us of what he did back in Boston during his glory days from 1998-2004. Two of those years were among the most dominant seasons in baseball history. He has emerged as an important player for Philadelphia at the perfect time and may actually play a pivotal roll in the playoffs. Who woulda thunk it? - Gregory Shapiro

Greg is an orthopedic surgeon that has a number of professional athletes including MLB players as patients. He’s an avid MLB fan and rotisserie player with some unique insight into the world of professional athletes.