You heard it here first: Pedro Martinez has exactly one year left with the Red Sox.

Everyone who breathes New England air has undoubtedly heard of the embarrassment that was game three of the American League Championship Series. While some members of Red Sox Nation may associate the game with the rivalry that existed between these two teams in the late 1970s, it is not the same.

There are very few times in my life that I would be ashamed to be a sports fan of any professional Boston sports team. That isn’t to say that I don’t have strains of tribalism in blood. It’s just that I do know when to draw the line.

The first thing that should be said is Martinez screwed up big time when uncorked a pitch in the direction of the head of Karim Garcia, the starting Yankees right fielder. I understand that intentionally hitting batters is part of the game of baseball. But it is inexcusable to aim a hard solid object at the head of an opponent. There is absolutely no justification for this action.

Martinez is a ferocious competitor. He hates to lose and he has often played in considerable pain. No one can deny that gives it his all when he’s on the mound.

The major fault of Pedro is his lack of judgment at times. This is what happened last Saturday. If he really only wanted to hit Garcia to send him a message, then he should have aimed lower. Much lower. Never mess with an opponent’s health.

So right now, Martinez is the number one villain in the eyes of Yankees fans. I believe that he is also not looked at too favorably by the triumvirate of John Henry, Larry Lucchino, and Theo Epstein. Martinez’s circus acts add a certain kind of baggage that will make it more difficult for the Sox ownership to pony up the ludicrous amount of money that Martinez will most certainly demand for his next contract. In addition, Martinez, while still a very good pitcher, has shown that his skills are diminishing.

The only point that I will defend Pedro on is the absurd decision on the part of Yankees bench coach Don Zimmer to charge the Sox starter. Zimmer, former Sox manager some twenty-five years ago, had no right charging Martinez and Martinez did nothing but avoid being assaulted. As a coach, Zimmer should have been playing the role of peacekeeper and not pugilist.

The bullpen melee between a Red Sox employee and several Yankee players is where New York embarrassed itself. By all accounts, Nelson went after the employee. I’ll concede the point that employee acted inappropriately, but it doesn’t justify the savage beating he received.

I also hung my head when Manny Ramirez became incensed after receiving a high fastball from Yankee hurler Roger Clemens. The pitch, although high, was not inside of the plate and had no chance of making contact with Ramirez. That event eventually led to the Martinez-Zimmer incident.

The surprising thing about last Saturday is the Clemens did not do anything to warrant reproach. The 41 year old has had an infamous history of head hunting (see Mike Piazza 2000) but he actually behaved himself through the entire episode. I just become annoyed when the Yankees and its management staff take a holier-than-thou attitude. It’s okay to defend the despicable actions of your own players while condemning the actions of your opponents.

Oh by the way, the Yankees won a close baseball game 4-3.