The Boston Red Sox have plenty of legendary former players to assist with spring training in Fort Myers.
David Ortiz, Jon Lester and Pedro Martínez are some of the Boston icons who've spent time down at Fenway South this winter. As stars of former Red Sox teams, their tutelage goes a long way for players currently trying to make their way through the big leagues.
Not everyone the Sox recruited to help out at spring training decided to go, though. Dustin Pedroia made his opinions about the state of the team known to management after being let down by the 2023-24 offseason. He declined the Sox's invitation to help out during the preseason.
Not every Red Sox legend of the past shares Pedroia's criticisms of the club. Martínez came to the organization's defense when asked about the lack of spending this winter.
On the latest @FenwayRundown, Pedro Martinez had some thoughts about the Red Sox largely staying out of the free agent market.
— Sean McAdam (@Sean_McAdam) March 7, 2024
You can hear the entire episode here: https://t.co/kD5RmHPhR3 pic.twitter.com/9KNRCPVAcn
Pedro Martínez defends Red Sox front office's offseason spending philosophy
"I think we haven’t had the success we expected. Yes, we did taste a little bit of what we invested in some of the players, but some of us also understand that we have been burned by going out there and getting the big guys and the big names and then getting rid of our minor league system — which was No. 1 when we first started here," Martínez said on the "Fenway Rundown" podcast.
“And ever since, we haven’t been able to recoup and, and when the stars go down, well, we don’t have anything to bring up. I think we need to find a balance between good players.”
Some of Martínez's statements ring true to fans. The point about "the big guys and the big names" not panning out definitely carries some weight, especially in the context of Chris Sale's tenure and recent departure from Boston.
But the team not being able to bounce back from previous misses could also be a result of not spending money on quality talent. Losing or trading prospects the organization has put time and money into developing is never ideal, but we've said it before and we'll say it again -- prospects come with no guarantees.
Established players don't come with any promises either, but at least they have a record of MLB games to refer to. There are hundreds of reasons someone could be sidelined at any given time and spending money on athletes in an industry where injuries are common is risky. But that's business.
And Martínez, the recipient of a once record-breaking contract when he originally signed with the very team he's defending, should know that.