N.Y. Mets ace Pedro Martinez done for the year

Pedro Martinez suffered a torn tendon in his left calf muscle forcing him to miss the remainder of the Mets baseball season.  In his last seven decisions Martinez was 2-5 and allowed 20 runs in his last four starts, all losses.

Martinez spent time on the DL earlier this year with an ailing hip and has been bothered by a toe injury since spring training.

With Martinez out the Mets face some difficult decisions with their starting pitching. Pedro had been slated to start the first game of the NLDS but now Orlando Hernandez will take the ball. Tom Glavine will be on the hill for game two and after that manager Willie Randolph will have some decisions to make.

Hernandez is a hard throwing right hander who finished the year with an 11-11 record. The Mets will be relying on him to be the power pitcher of the staff, a highly prized commodity come playoff time. In last night’s game against Atlanta, Hernandez struck out nine Braves in five innings.

It was 20 years ago that the Mets won their last World Series title. If they are to capture the crown again it will have to come from a lineup featuring Jose Reyes, David Wright, Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado.