Old pictures of Pedro

YouLookAdopted

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Dec 8, 2005
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Hey guys, 
 
I worked for a minor league team that, a long time ago, used to be the single A affiliate of the Dodgers when Pedro was part of their system.  My boss gave me an old desk that he thought had last been used in the mid-90s.  Inside, I found signed balls, old photos and other memorabilia.  Among all of this stuff, were these two pictures of Pedro.  They have been sitting in my garage for about seven years and I came across them again this weekend while I was cleaning it out.  Just wanted to get them out there in case anything every happens to them.
 
He pitched here for 10 games.  He was 19 years old at the time.  This was his first stop after rookie ball.  These are obviously not in game performances.  The story I was told about them was that they were taken the first day that Pedro arrived in Bakersfield.  He was asked to pose for some pictures that were used for a team magnet giveaway.  One of these pictures was used to make a Pedro Martinez magnet.  We had one hanging on the fridge inside the clubhouse.  There's also a Mike Piazza and Eric Karros magnet and I think I have the pictures they used for those somewhere around here as well...
 
Anyhow, not sure if this belongs on the main board.  I figured, Pedro... main board.  If not, feel free to move it to where ever.
 
 
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ScubaSteveAvery

Master of the Senate
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Jul 29, 2007
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Awesome find YLA. I grew up in Bakersfield and went to countless Blaze games. I always did love walking into the stadium with all the paintings of famous players who came through there. 
 
Here is Pedro's old one. 
 

 
A Google search shows the team updated them.  You'll also notice Rocco Baldelli's on the right.
 
 

Corsi

isn't shy about blowing his wad early
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InsideTheParker said:
Boy, he was skinny. No wonder Lasorda thought he was too small to be a starter.
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5B9B_jqyh0
 

Rasputin

Will outlive SeanBerry
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Is that Rocco Baldelli on the right, and did they fire the guy that designed that crap to be completely unreadable?
 

gibdied

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Thanks for sharing these.  Pedro is my favorite player of all time and it's not even close.  It's cool to see some photos that had been lost to time, so to speak.  
 
Incidentally, for anyone curious, here's a link to the stats for the 1991 Bakersfield team:
 
http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/team.cgi?id=ee000181
 
Pedro was the only player on the team under 20.  Oh, and he dominated.  
 

sime

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Oct 19, 2011
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The photos alone are to be treasured, even more so with that story.  Gotta love how much that grin in the first photo foreshadows what's to come.
 
Rasputin said:
Is that Rocco Baldelli on the right, and did they fire the guy that designed that crap to be completely unreadable?
 
Yep, as mentioned by the poster who shared the photo, that's Rocco.  I'm guessing the designer wanted the subject to take precedence and that in person it's a lot easier to read the names, but yeah, that purple.  
 
M

MentalDisabldLst

Guest
gibdied said:
Thanks for sharing these.  Pedro is my favorite player of all time and it's not even close.  It's cool to see some photos that had been lost to time, so to speak.  
 
Incidentally, for anyone curious, here's a link to the stats for the 1991 Bakersfield team:
 
http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/team.cgi?id=ee000181
 
Pedro was the only player on the team under 20.  Oh, and he dominated.  
 
22yo Mike Piazza, 20yo Raul Mondesi, 18yo Pedro Martinez and a 32yo Orel Hershiser on a rehab stint.  Not too shabby for a High-A ball team.
 

YouLookAdopted

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Rasputin said:
Is that Rocco Baldelli on the right, and did they fire the guy that designed that crap to be completely unreadable?
 
Yes, that's Rocco and yes, the guy that chose the purple lettering on those banners was fired the same year he put those up.  
 

YouLookAdopted

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ScubaSteveAvery said:
Awesome find YLA. I grew up in Bakersfield and went to countless Blaze games. I always did love walking into the stadium with all the paintings of famous players who came through there. 
 
Here is Pedro's old one. 
 

 
 
Hey Steve, I forgot that you also grew up in Bakersfield.  Yes, all of the old paintings on wood were amazing.  There were six in total: Pedro, Don Drysdale, Eric Karros, Ron Cey, Rick Sutcliffe and I think Raul Mondesi.  
 

Fred not Lynn

Dick Button Jr.
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Jul 13, 2005
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I went to a game in Bakersfield this summer. At first I was really taken aback at how not up-to-date the stadium was, but by the end I loved it.

It took me a while to figure out why the game started so late (8 PM on July 4)...