Cards Host Mets
New York Mets starter Pedro Martinez is healthy again, but he still doesn’t look like himself on the mound.
Martinez will be trying to bounce back from another rough outing as the Mets continue their four-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday at Busch Stadium.
Oddsmakers from Sportsbook.com have made St. Louis -110 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for tonight’s game, the over/under has been set at 9 total runs (Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 73% of bets for this game have been placed on St. Louis -110 (View MLB Bet Percentages).
Martinez (2-2, 7.12 ERA) has allowed 12 runs in 10 innings in his last two starts, both losses. The 36-year-old right-hander gave up six runs in 5 2-3 innings in the second game of a doubleheader against the Yankees on Friday.
"I’m just not doing my job, and that’s something to worry about," the three-time Cy Young Award winner said. "It’s time for me for getting better, not getting worse. I’ve got to make some adjustments.
"The health is there. It’s not physically, it’s got to be mechanically."
Martinez is making his seventh start and sixth since a stint on the DL with a left hamstring strain. Though Mike Pelfrey also started Friday, interim manager Jerry Manuel elected to keep Martinez on regular rest in the hopes of getting him into a rhythm.
"Pedro in my opinion needs to get back into a routine vs. a rest," said Manuel, who also suggested Martinez might be tipping pitches. "The routine is more important now than having an extra day."
Martinez is 4-4 with a 3.27 ERA in 15 career appearances – 10 starts – against the Cardinals. No current Cardinals with at least five at-bats have hit better than .200 against him.
"He’s probably trying to figure some things out, and he will," Manuel told the Mets’ official Web site. "You know, as long as he is healthy, you know the competitor will eventually figure something out."
Martinez gave up three runs in seven innings in his last start against the Cardinals (48-37), a 3-0 loss on Sept. 27. It was his first loss in six starts against St. Louis since a 6-4 defeat on July 28, 1996, while he was still with Montreal.
Joel Pineiro (2-4, 4.33), who starts for the Cardinals, pitched eight innings in that game to earn the win in his first career start against the Mets.
The Mets (41-42) have won nine of their last 12 games against St. Louis, including Tuesday’s 7-4 win. Backup catcher Ramon Castro drove in three runs, and David Wright went 3-for-4 with a homer.
Carlos Delgado, who had been 1-for-13 in his previous four games since driving in a franchise-record nine runs in the first game of Friday’s doubleheader against the Yankees on Saturday, went 3-for-3. The Mets scored just six total runs over that four-game span, going 1-3.
The Cardinals had a three-game winning streak end despite Rick Ankiel’s two-run homer. Aaron Miles went 1-for-4 and is hitting .421 (24-for-57) during a 13-game hitting streak.
Now, they’ll hand the ball to Pineiro, who is 0-2 with a 4.63 ERA in eight starts since defeating Cincinnati on April 29.
"You can’t go out there and expect the guys to get 10 runs every time," Pineiro, who has not received more than two runs of support in any of his last five starts, told the Cardinals’ official team Web site. "They’re out there battling the same way I’m battling on the mound. So you’ve just got to keep on pitching, and hopefully good things will happen for us."
The right-hander was pounded for seven runs and 10 hits in 7 2-3 innings of Friday’s 7-2 loss in Kansas City.
Did you like this article? Subscribe to our Baseball news feed for the fastest updates delivered right to you – Click here to Subscribe