American LeaguePedro Martinez has stopped contract negotiations with the Boston Red Sox and will test the free agent market after this season, the All-Star pitcher told the Boston Herald.
Dominican-born Martinez has asked his agent to notify general manager Theo Epstein and team president Larry Lucchino that he would no longer talk contract with the club during the season, according to a story posted on the newspaper's Web site late Friday.
Martinez's agent, Fernando Cuza, did not immediately respond to a message from AP seeking comment early Saturday.
PHOTO: AP
"I'm just really sad for the fans in New England who had high hopes that at this time I could say, truly, that I was going to stay in Boston, but now they're going to have to compete with the rest of the league," Martinez told the newspaper on Friday before the team was scheduled to play in Texas.
After the game was postponed by rain, Martinez was not available.
He is 3-1 with a 3.03 ERA in his seventh season with the Red Sox, and is scheduled to pitch today.
"It is club policy not to comment on contract negotiations during the season," Epstein, who was not in Arlington, said through a Red Sox spokesman on Friday night.
Martinez is making US$17.5 million this season. He told the Boston Herald that he held no ill will toward the Red Sox.
"It's just business," said the right-hander, who is 170-69 in his career with a 2.62 ERA.
Martinez would not say what the chances are that he would re-sign with Boston.
"I don't know, I'm going to have to wait and see," he told the paper. "I gave them every single chance I could ... I gave them every opportunity, every discount I could give them to actually stay in Boston and they never took advantage of it. Didn't even give me an offer."
YANKEES 5, ROYALS 2
Javier Vazquez allowed two runs on two hits in eight innings Friday as the New York Yankees won their season-high fourth in a row with a 5-2 over the Kansas City Royals.
"I felt pretty good, but when you're pitching, someone's usually going to get a hit," Vazquez said nonchalantly. "You're not going to get a no-hitter every night you pitch."
Vazquez (3-2) retired the first 13 batters he faced -- including five on infield popups -- before allowing a solo homer to Ken Harvey in the fifth. He walked none and struck out five.
"He just doesn't seem to get rattled," manager Joe Torre said. ``He gives up the home run and then just gets it done.''
Mariano Rivera pitched the ninth for his eighth save.
Derek Jeter was 1-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and a run scored. Bernie Williams doubled twice and drove in a run.
The Royals' Brian Anderson (1-2) allowed five runs and walked seven in seven-plus innings.
Indians 11, Orioles 2
In Cleveland, Travis Hafner had four RBIs and Cliff Lee's strong start helped relieve a struggling bullpen as Cleveland trounced Baltimore.
Lee (3-0) allowed one run and five hits in seven innings while giving most of the Indians' relievers another day to rest. He walked four and struck out five.
Athletics 4, Devil Rays 2
In St. Petersburg, Florida, Erubiel Durazo hit a pair of two-run homers to help Oakland beat Tampa Bay and snap a six-game losing streak.
Durazo homered in the fifth and seventh innings for the Athletics, who were coming off sweeps by Anaheim and New York. It was Durazo's eighth multihomer game.
Mark Redman (2-1) allowed just four singles in 6 2-3 innings.
Mariners 3, Tigers 1
In Detroit, Raul Ibanez hit a two-run homer in the 10th inning to lift struggling Seattle over Detroit.
Scott Spiezio singled off Al Levine (2-1) to start the 10th. Ibanez followed two batters later with his fifth homer of the season.
Eddie Guardado pitched a perfect 10th for his fourth save. Former Tiger Mike Myers (1-1) got the final two outs of the ninth to pick up the win.
Seattle won for just the second time in nine games. Detroit has lost four of five, but finished the month 12-11 for its first winning April since 1993.
Ichiro Suzuki started the game with the 10th leadoff homer of his career.
Twins 6, Angels 3
In Minneapolis, Carlos Silva allowed two earned runs in 7 1-3 innings to lift Minnesota past Anaheim for its 12th win in 15 games.
Silva (4-0), acquired in an offseason trade that sent Eric Milton to the Philadelphia Phillies, allowed seven hits in the longest outing of his career.
National League
Randy Wolf extended his scoreless innings streak to 21, and Bobby Abreu and Jim Thome hit consecutive homers to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-0 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night.
Wolf (2-1) pitched seven innings, allowing five hits and one walk. He struck out five before asking to come out of the game after 106 pitches, citing fatigue.
The left-hander, coming off a shutout in his previous start at Montreal, had another strong outing in front of one of his biggest fans -- his older brother Jim was the third base umpire.
Abreu and Thome hit back-to-back homers in the third off Elmer Dessens (1-3). The right-hander allowed six hits and four runs in four innings. Arizona's Danny Bautista singled in the seventh to extend his hitting streak to 21 games, longest active in the majors.
Pirates 4, Brewers 2
In Milwaukee, Kris Benson pitched into the eighth inning and Raul Mondesi hit three doubles as Pittsburgh beat Milwaukee.
Benson (3-1) struck out seven in 7 2-3 innings, his longest outing since May 27, 2003, in a 9-4 win over the Chicago Cubs. His 2003 season was cut short on July 18 by right shoulder tendinitis. He retired 10 in a row at one point.
Astros 6, Reds 1
In Houston, Roger Clemens won his 315th game, moving past Gaylord Perry for 15th place on the career wins list as Houston downed Cincinnati.
Clemens (5-0) walked four of the first seven batters he faced, including D'Angelo Jimenez with the bases loaded, but quickly recovered. He allowed one run and five hits over six innings, while striking out six.
Cardinals 4, Cubs 3
In St. Louis, LaTroy Hawkins walked Mike Matheny to force in the game-winning run in the ninth inning, spoiling a sharp outing by Kerry Wood in St. Louis' win over Chicago. Reggie Sanders hit his eighth home run for St. Louis.
Dodgers 13, Expos 4
In Los Angeles, Paul Lo Duca ended a 65-game homerless drought to help Los Angeles send Montreal to its fifth straight loss.
Lo Duca's solo shot in the fourth was his first since July 31 at Philadelphia. Shawn Green also homered for Los Angeles.
The Expos have lost 16 of their last 19 games.
Giants 12, Marlins 9
In San Francisco, rookie Brian Dallimore's grand slam highlighted San Francisco's rally from an early seven-run deficit to beat Florida.
After falling behind 9-2 in the second inning, the Giants scored seven runs -- five off Marlins starter Dontrelle Willis -- in the home half to tie it.
Padres 7, Mets 6
In San Diego, Brian Giles hit a two-run home run to start San Diego's five-run comeback over New York and Ramon Vazquez drove in the go-ahead run with an RBI single in the fifth.
The Mets scored five in the first off Padres starter Brain Lawrence (3-2), but he settled down and worked the next four innings scoreless.
Meanwhile, the Padres rallied against New York starter Tyler Yates (1-3), who allowed five runs on seven hits in 4 1-3 innings.
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Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
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