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For Pedro, rest is best: the Mets view Pedro Martinez the way an art museum curator views a prized sculpture—as a precious commodity that must be handled with care

Sporting News, The, May 13, 2005 by Ken Rosenthal

Mets pitching coach Rick Peterson sat in his apartment in Florida just before the start of spring training, mapping out pitching rotations, driving himself nuts.

His goal was to give righthander Pedro Martinez extra rest between starts as often as possible while enabling the Mets' other top pitcher, lefty Tom Glavine, to work on his normal fifth day.

It was a jigsaw puzzle Peterson couldn't solve.

"Dad, you all right?" one of his children asked one night as Peterson stared out at the sunset.

"Just give me a couple of minutes. I've got to look at this," Peterson replied.

And then it hit him.

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"Geez," Peterson said to himself, "this is it!"

Peterson won't reveal the exact schedule that he deciphered at that instant, but he and the Mets did the smart thing, formulating a plan that will give Martinez the best possible chance to succeed.

Such a move might seem obvious for a team that has invested $54 million in a 33-year-old pitcher with a slight build and a history of arm trouble. But even though Martinez's previous team, the Red Sox, tried to get him extra rest whenever possible, it didn't completely restructure its rotation for him.

The Mets did.

"He's probably going to have the most optimal schedule, looking at what he's done the last few years, to suit his specific needs," Peterson says. "It's going to be very conducive to what makes Pedro best."

The value of extra rest to Martinez became obvious last season when he posted a 4.77 ERA in 17 starts on the standard four days rest and a 2.98 ERA in 16 starts on five or more days of rest.

Martinez figures to make about half as many starts on normal rest this season. Yet, the Mets have arranged their rotation in a way that still should allow him to match his career high of 33 starts.

In his first five outings, Martinez worked on normal rest twice and on five or more days rest three times. That's quite a contrast from last season--beginning with his third start, he pitched six of seven games on four days rest. Although his ERA after that stretch last year was a solid 3.75, the Mets plan to avoid bunching his starts on normal rest.

The team studied Martinez's performances on different rest patterns over the past several seasons--how he fared on back-to-back starts with four days rest, on five days rest after four days rest, etc. His ERA on normal rest last season was skewed by poor performances in his final three starts, when he likely was tired. But even taking away those games--two of which were against his daddy, the Yankees--Martinez's ERA was almost one run better on extended rest.

Martinez deflects the issue, saying, "I'm just here to pitch." But Peterson's schedule almost certainly will play a role if Martinez rebounds from his career-worst 3.90 ERA last season. If he doesn't, Martinez's decline probably would have been irreversible, anyway. Based on his strong early showing, he looks as if he has plenty left.

TSN's Closer, Todd Jones, talks baseball with Tim Brando every Tuesday on Sporting News Radio. The Tim Brando Show airs weekdays, 3-5 p.m. ET.

speed reads

It's about time commissioner Bud Selig backed the players union into a corner over its reluctance to accept tougher drug testing. The penalties proposed by Selig would be far more of a deterrent than those currently in place. Union officials might bristle, but it will be difficult for them to justify opposing-the wishes of fans, Congress and, most important, their own members.

Curt Schilling might have a point about Devil Rays manager Lou Piniella, but the Red Sox share responsibility for the escalation of knockdown pitches between the teams. If, as Schilling says, a Rays player called Piniella an "idiot," citing him as the reason the team loses 100 games, that player is clueless. Piniella is the reason the Rays don't lose 120.

The Blue Jays obviously had doubts about hitting coach Mike Barnett entering the season or they would not have fired him after only 20 games. Rather than give the impression of a knee-jerk reaction, they should have made the change in the offseason. That way, they could have searched for the best coach available.

INSIDE DISH

For Pedro, rest is best: the Mets view Pedro Martinez the way an art museum curator views a prized sculpture—as a precious commodity that must be handled with care

Sporting News, The, May 13, 2005 by Ken Rosenthal

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