Fenway Crowds Fan Motivation for Martinez

As former Dodger Ramon Martinez continues to work his way back from 1998 shoulder surgery, trying to be a consistent complement to brother Pedro in the Boston Red Sox rotation, he is appreciative of the support he has received from sometimes fickle Fenway Park fans. The intense atmosphere at Fenway is far different than Dodger Stadium, he said, and is a motivation in itself.

“I like it,” he said. “It’s tense, it’s nice. Every pitch you throw counts. A guy gets a base hit, the crowd goes crazy. Even when they boo it’s because they want to win so much.

“I was talking to Nomar [Garciaparra] and I asked him, because he used to live in [the Los Angeles area] if he ever thought about signing with the Dodgers or Angels. He said, yeah, at first he wanted to play for the Dodgers until he got to Boston and felt this atmosphere. I mean, Dodger fans are kind of quiet. You can be pitching a no-hitter into the sixth or seventh inning, they start getting excited.

“In Boston, it’s a lot different. Even in the first inning, it’s like a World Series, especially last year, when I faced the [New York] Yankees. It was unbelievable. It was like you hear everybody screaming, every single pitch you throw. It was a challenge. It keeps you in the game. There is no way you fall asleep out there.”

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While Randy Johnson is off to another dominating start with the Arizona Diamondbacks, his potential successor with the Seattle Mariners--in size and style--is off to an equally dominating start at triple-A Tacoma, putting pressure on the Mariners for an early recall.

Ryan Anderson, a 6-foot-11 left-hander known as the Little Unit, has struck out 20, walked only three and given up only three hits in 11 2/3 innings of his first two starts. More important, the first-round selection of the Mariners in 1997 is beginning to show humility and maturity. At 20, he is said to no longer resemble the brash goofball who boasted about how he “pretty much dominated” the Mariner veterans after a batting-practice stint in his first spring camp.

“I like everything I’ve seen,” Tacoma Manager Dave Myers said. “We’ve seen better dedication to the game and much more maturity on and off the field. The best lessons are those you learn through your own mistakes.”

With Anderson on an accelerated course at Tacoma and Brett Tomko also doing well there, the Mariners have the pitching surplus needed to trade for a left-handed-hitting outfielder, still a priority.

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Outfielder Chad Curtis had a vocal confrontation with Texas Ranger teammate Royce Clayton last week when Curtis complained about explicit lyrics in the rap music belting from the clubhouse stereo with children present.

Curtis says what he believes. He suffered a thumb injury in a 1997 clubhouse fight with Kevin Mitchell--it was definitely an over-the-weight bout for the 185-pound Curtis--when he also complained about the music. He also twice publicly confronted New York Yankee teammate Derek Jeter for his refusal to participate in a brawl with the Mariners last year. Jeter and Alex Rodriguez more or less laughed through the incident, but the Yankees are Jeter’s team--and the criticism got Curtis traded to Texas last winter.

“For whatever reason, I find myself in the middle of controversy,” said Curtis, who has produced a 10-year career after being a 45th-round draft choice of the Angels. “Maybe it’s a character flaw, or maybe it’s my strength of character. I’m not afraid to stand up and say something is wrong.”