Hamstring strain sends Pedro to DL

MIAMI -- The anticipated assignment, Pedro Martinez to the disabled list, has happened. Before they even began their third game of the season Wednesday night, the Mets removed their second starter from the active roster, initiating a Pedro-less period they expect to extend into the middle of next month.

The club announced the diagnosis -- mild strain of the left hamstring -- and the prognosis without defining how it would replace Martinez in the rotation. To replace him on the roster, the Mets purchased the contract of Nelson Figueroa from the roster of its Triple-A New Orleans affiliate and added the right-handed journeyman to the 25-man roster.

The decision to disable Martinez was made after the hamstring was examined via an MRI in Manhattan on Wednesday afternoon and one night after he injured the muscle throwing a pitch in the fourth inning of the Mets' 5-4, 10-inning loss to the Marlins.

It's the third straight season that Martinez has been placed on the disabled list.

The club said Martinez was expected to return to pitching in four to six weeks. It didn't specify at what level. The longer Martinez goes without pitching, the more pitching at a Minor League level he is likely to need.

While manager Willie Randolph didn't say who might start in Martinez's stead, he did say who wouldn't -- Jorge Sosa. A person in the organization had characterized Sosa as the most logical choice Wednesday morning. But Randolph indicated he preferred not to upset the balance in the bullpen by starting Sosa. Of the eight pitchers not in the rotation, Figueroa is the most likely to start. But Randolph said he had no person in mind because a need for the fifth starter doesn't arise until April 12.