Martinez Might Be Interested in Returning

Boston Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez, who has always said he would never consider returning to the Dodgers, now has an open mind about it. Martinez, in an interview with reporters covering the Red Sox on Friday night, said he would definitely enter the free-agent market next winter and instructed agent Fernando Cuza to tell the Red Sox he would not negotiate during the remainder of the season.

The 32-year-old right-hander, a three-time Cy Young Award winner who is baseball’s highest-salaried pitcher at $17.5 million, accused the Red Sox of lying about the status of contract negotiations and trying to drive down his price by unfairly raising questions about the condition of his right shoulder.

“That bothered me a little because that was dirty playing after I promised I was going to keep my mouth shut about the negotiations,” said Martinez, who is 3-2 after being hit hard by the Texas Rangers on Saturday. He added: “I just don’t like people lying, trying to fake that they’re signing us when they never made an effort strong enough to make us think about anything.”

Martinez did not rule out negotiating with the Red Sox when the season was over, but he said he would now consider any team, including the Dodgers.

“The Dodgers don’t have the same people that were there when I was mistreated,” he said. “I’m open to anybody, just as I am open to anybody in the future.”

The Dodgers traded Martinez to the Montreal Expos for second baseman Delino DeShields in November 1993. Then-General Manager Fred Claire has always taken responsibility for what became one of the worst transactions in club history, but Martinez has also put responsibility on Manager Tom Lasorda for influencing Claire’s thinking that Martinez was too frail to be either a regular starter or dependable reliever.

Lasorda remains with the Dodgers as a senior vice president. Dr. Frank Jobe, who operated on Martinez’s left shoulder in 1992 and has acknowledged that he told Claire that Martinez could be vulnerable to physical problems, also remains with the club as a team physician.

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Paul Lo Duca went 65 games and 266 at-bats between his final home run of 2003 and his first of this season, which is just fine with the Dodgers considering the other ways the catcher is contributing on offense.

Lo Duca entered Saturday’s game against Montreal second in the National League with a .416 average and ninth with a .447 on-base percentage. Once a home run threat who hit a career-high 25 homers in 2001, Lo Duca has shortened his stroke this season and utilized a different stance to become a better contact hitter.

“It sounds weird, but I’ve always felt more comfortable as a two-strike hitter,” Lo Duca said. “So I’ve gotten into my two-strike stance, and I’m flattening my bat out just trying to make more solid contact.”

Lo Duca hit 10 homers in 2002 and seven in 2003. With his solo shot Friday against the Expos, Lo Duca is on pace to hit six this season.

“This is exactly the way we want him to be,” Manager Jim Tracy said. “We don’t want him to swing for the fences because he gets himself into trouble when he does. He ends up becoming very pull-conscious and starts hitting a lot of fly balls. He’s a much better offensive player when he’s using the whole field and putting the ball in play.”

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Milton Bradley (sprained left ankle) was out of the starting lineup for a second consecutive game, but he took batting practice right-handed and was available as a pinch-hitter. Bradley, who could return today, played six games in pain after injuring the ankle April 21.

But Bradley left Thursday’s game against the New York Mets after the sixth inning because “it hurt a lot and I couldn’t take it no more. I’ve never sprained it like this.”

Dave Roberts switched from left field to center in Bradley’s absence Saturday, with Juan Encarnacion in left field and Shawn Green in right.