Pedro's return

Adam Rubin at The NY Daily News writes about the return of Pedro Martinez and what Willie has planed:

The Mets anticipate Pedro Martinez will get three or four September starts before starting Game 1 of their first playoff series since 2000.

Randolph said he'd like his ace to make "at least three" starts before the postseason.

That would mean Martinez should be back on the mound around the middle of September. The playoffs begin Oct. 3 or 4 and three starts with rest means Martinez would be back 15 days before that, at the latest.

Yesterday, Martinez went to the minor league training complex in Port St. Lucie, Fla., to work his way back from a strained right calf that has had him on the disabled list since Aug. 16. He could be there for as little as a week.

"When Pedro gets back, he's going to have to get some starts in and he'll be on five days," Randolph said. "I have to get him ready for the end of the season.

"You want to start (the playoffs) with your best guy. We'll try to set it up that way."