By Ed Odeven

From time to time I enjoy repeat reads of random articles from the late David Halberstam’s “Everything They Had,” an anthology of his quality sportswriting.

Today, during coffee time, I opened the book to Halberstam’s ESPN.com piece on Pedro Martinez from Aug. 3, 2001. He described the essence of the then-Red Sox hurler with keen observations.

He wrote: “…Pedro Martinez … is, to my mind, not merely the best pitcher in baseball today, but something rarer still — a genuine artist.

“I say artist, because of the level of craftsmanship involved, the assortment of pitches, the variety of speeds, the perfection of location. Pedro Martinez is not only ahead of the hitters, he is ahead of the fans, the announcers, and most likely his own catcher.

“…Pedro is an artisan; for the true fan, watching him pitch is like getting a lesson in the infinite possibilities of the game.”