Martinez

When a player shuffles off the court weighted down with an 0-9 career record against Monica Seles, it's time to take small consolation. For Conchita Martinez, yesterday's 6-4, 6-3 U.S. Open semifinal defeat marked the first time the 24-year-old Spaniard had won more than six games in a match against Seles. A year ago in an Open semi, Seles trounced a listless Martinez, 6-2, 6-2. Against a player of Seles's superior caliber, pro-gress is measured in small steps. After Hurricane Fran's long-distance contribution to the Open resulted in several rain delays lasting more than three hours, the Steffi Graf-Martina Hingis semifinal was postponed last night.

Maybe Pedro Martinez was "at times" the most influential player who ever stepped in the House that Ruth Built. That was the convoluted claim Pedro made this week at a news conference/stream-of-conscious monologue. Playing across the street last night at the new Yankee Stadium, Martinez wasn't even the most influential pitcher in Game 2 of the 2009 World Series. This was kind of like Game 1, with some roles reversed. Martinez pitched fine, just as Yankees starter CC Sabathia had in the World Series opener on Wednesday.

One instant, Kirby Puckett was beginning that familiar leg kick, looking for his 100th RBI of the season. The next, he was sprawled in the dirt, blood pouring from his nose and mouth. A Dennis Martinez fastball shattered Puckett's upper jaw during the first inning of the Minnesota Twins' 12-4 loss to the visiting Cleveland Indians yesterday. He will need four to six weeks to recover, and his teammates might need just as long after the most frightening moment of the 1995 season.

As Pedro Martinez made his way down the line of lunging fans who held out baseballs, ticket stubs, and even Mets jerseys to be autographed, a man handed the pitcher an open cell phone. He wanted Martinez to say hi to his friend. Martinez turned to his right with a look like Are you serious? But he kept moving down the line, mostly embracing the gimmicks that come with minor-league baseball. Yes, Martinez remains in limbo, traveling around the minors until the Phillies deem he is ready or they decide how to use the righthander - whichever comes first.

If Pedro Martinez can captivate the crowd with his pitching the way he did at yesterday's news conference, then the Phillies' righthander should have some start against the New York Yankees in tonight's second game of the World Series at Yankee Stadium. Martinez will oppose righthander A.J. Burnett, who is making his first World Series appearance. This will be Martinez's second postseason appearance this year. He pitched seven shutout innings and received no decision during the Phillies' 2-1 loss Oct. 16 to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLCS.

With Pedro Martinez on top of his game and Tom Gordon warming up in the bullpen, Boston manager Jimy Williams couldn't go wrong. The way Martinez was pitching, allowing only one hit in eight innings yesterday, he seemed like a good bet to finish a 3-1 victory over host Tampa Bay. Instead, Williams turned to Gordon, who worked the ninth to get his 23rd save in 24 chances. "That's his job," Williams said of the Red Sox closer, who picked up three saves during the four-game series.

Actor A Martinez, who plays Cruz Castillo on NBC's "Santa Barbara," doesn't credit his swarthy good looks, his acclaimed acting talents or even his basic common sense for helping him get ahead in show business. In fact, he jokes, "I don't get any of the credit. I've done some stupid career things. I always admonish A for being stupid. But I also acknowledge that A is lucky. I have good people around me. " Those good people in 1984 convinced the actor to take the role of Cruz, a heroic cop, on NBC's then-new soap.

The Rev. Ivonne E. Martinez has resigned from the Camden school board, five days before she was to meet with the governor to explain her chronic absences from the board, which has been unable to meet because of the excessive absences by three appointed members. In a six-paragraph letter submitted Monday to acting Gov. Richard J. Codey, Martinez wrote: "I voluntarily and by my doctor's recommendation step down from the assignment. . . . Due to my health, at this time I cannot fulfill this commitment.

Her mission: to get people thinking about the price of ignorance. Her credo: "Xenophobia is learned, so it can be unlearned. " Her medium: paints - acrylics, to be specific. Native New Yorker Soraida Martinez, who grew up in a mixed-race family of Puerto Rican origin, creates vibrant works that beckon understanding between the races and the sexes. Her latest exhibition, at the Markeim Gallery in Haddonfield, is called Soraida's Verdadism, or "Soraida's truth. " Verdadism, from the Spanish word for truth, is a term she coined for her series of Cubistlike, in-your-face paintings.

Some Phillies newcomers slip into camp as anonymously as the man who delivers sandwiches to the Jack Russell Stadium clubhouse every day. Not Felix Martinez. Two years ago, when he was just 23, Martinez was the opening-day shortstop for the Kansas City Royals. He lost that job after two months because he swung his fist better than his bat. On June 2, 1998, the Royals and Anaheim Angels played an ugly game that featured a handful of beanballs, two brawls and 12 ejections.

SARASOTA, Fla. - The infielders keep dropping for the Phillies, who lost Michael Martinez when he suffered a broken bone in his right foot Tuesday. Martinez was hit by a pitch in the seventh inning of a 4-1 Phillies victory over Baltimore and was wearing a walking boot after the game. Following X-rays, the Phillies said he fractured the fourth metatarsal in his right foot, and did not provide a timetable for his return. After being plunked, Martinez was examined by head athletic trainer Scott Sheridan but stayed in the game.

DETROIT TIGERS star Victor Martinez has injured his left knee and is likely to miss most of the 2012 season. The Tigers said yesterday that the 33-year-old Martinez tore his left ACL last week during offseason conditioning. The team said the slugging designated hitter will be re-examined next week and surgery is expected. Martinez hit .330 with 103 RBI in 2011, helping Detroit win the AL Central in his first season with the Tigers. He signed a $50 million, 4-year contract before last season.

Detroit Tigers star Victor Martinez could miss the entire 2012 season after injuring his left knee during offseason conditioning. The Tigers said Tuesday the 33-year-old Martinez tore his left anterior cruciate ligament last week. An MRI exam on Monday in Lakeland, Fla., revealed the injury. The slugging designated hitter will be evaluated again next week, but the team fully expects Martinez to need surgery. In other injury developments, Boston Red Sox outfielder Carl Crawford had surgery on his left wrist and could miss opening day.   Counsell retires With no interest in his services this offseason, Craig Counsell, 41, decided to retire and will take a job with the Milwaukee Brewers' front office.

When Camden Parking Authority Board Commissioner Falio Leyba Martinez walked into the Dec. 19 board meeting, he didn't think much of the agenda: routine. Approve minutes from the previous meeting and bills for the month. Martinez left just before the meeting ended because of a family emergency. Then the three board members who remained voted to hire Willie E. Hunter, a politically connected former board member, as the authority's director of operations. It was the second top-level hire in recent months at the troubled quasi-government agency after it went more than a year without an executive director.

After the Union's season, team manager Peter Nowak talked about the importance of having competitions at all positions. With the addition of Costa Rican international Josue Martinez on Wednesday, Nowak has added depth to the forward position. The 5-foot-10 Martinez turns 22 in March. It will be interesting to see the impact his addition has on Danny Mwanga. Of course, Mwanga and Martinez could both play up top if Sebastien Le Toux is moved back to the midfield. However, Le Toux is most effective as the target player up top. Mwanga, 20, took a step back during a second season that was marred by a hip injury.

MILWAUKEE - Wilson Valdez had never experienced hamstring problems before. So that's why he attempted to stay in Saturday's game after injuring his left leg. "I was trying to," Valdez said. "But if I hit, I don't think I would have been able to run to first base. If I tried to run hard, I would pull it. " Valdez was ultimately removed and sat on the bench Sunday. It's notable only because Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins were already out of the lineup. So Charlie Manuel fielded a double-play combo of Pete Orr and Michael Martinez in Sunday's series finale against Milwaukee.

Nasuil Martinez' life got a little bit more difficult yesterday - if that's at all possible. Martinez, 21, of North Philadelphia, was already facing nine open felony cases, including charges of attempting to murder six cops in December. Such heat may have put thoughts of escaping in his head on April 11. That's when the young father, who is being held without bail and who would spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted on all of the charges, was caught with a 7 inch, shiny metal shank hidden inside a brace Martinez had on his arm, which was also in a sling.

NEW YORK - In a season where the injuries have been plentiful but the surprises few, not many Phillies fans could have forecast a story line in which the hitting stars in the same game would be Michael Martinez and Kyle Kendrick. Yet the utility player with no previous career home runs and the pitcher who began the day with one hit all season slugged their way to Sunday's 8-5 win over the Mets at Citi Field. That gave the Phillies the rubber game in this three-game series and improved their major league-best record to 59-35.

NEW YORK - You play 162 games over six months and you are bound to win some and lose some in a variety of ways. There is also likely to be an evolution of the way players are used and who contributes at any given time during the course of the long season. The good teams keep winning regardless of the circumstances, and, after the Phillies took another three-game series by beating the New York Mets, 8-5, Sunday afternoon at Citi Field, you can continue to call them the best team in baseball.