NATIONAL LEAGUE Mets' Martinez looks forward to retiring

Plagued by injuries, Pedro Martinez may call it quits in 2008.
KNIGHT-RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
MIAMI -- Pedro Martinez told ESPNdeportes.com his career figures to end after his contract expires in 2008 -- no great surprise, considering the ace has battled toe, hip and shoulder discomfort during his brief Mets career.
But when confronted with the Internet report on Saturday, the ace was noncommittal, saying: "I'm going to let God dictate that."
Though the intense coverage of his right big toe has subsided since every adjustment of his reconfigured Nike cleat was chronicled during spring training, Martinez still battles discomfort.
It's a major reason why the Mets give Martinez extra days of rest -- such as having started him Friday against the Marlins rather than against the contending Phillies the previous day, when he would have been on standard rest.
The Mets appear poised to give Martinez an extra day of rest before four of his nine remaining first-half starts. (As a byproduct, he should be pitching at Fenway Park against the Red Sox on June 28.)
Wants time with family
ESPNdeportes.com reporter Enrique Rojas quoted Martinez, who got married over the winter, as saying:
"I've sacrificed my life, my good years, to baseball. I want to go home while I still have the energy to spend time with my family.
"Work is good and it dignifies men, but I want to enjoy the fruits of my efforts. I plan to enjoy a nice retirement and a healthy life after baseball.
"I don't want to leave the game on crutches or in a wheelchair without having dedicated myself to my children and my family.
"I've done a lot in a short period of time, and now my body must pay the price. A lot of people get startled by the fact that I'm 34, but the thing is that in seven years I worked more than 95 percent of the pitchers in MLB.
"I'll most likely retire after this contract, but it'll depend on how I'm feeling at the time. And if I'm feeling then like I am now, my Dominican fans and my family wouldn't forgive me if I don't retire.
Foot bothering him
After every game, my foot swells and I have to go through an intense process of massages and treatment for four days to prevent the swelling. The only day I don't work my foot is the day before the game."
Martinez had little interest in discussing the topic when approached yesterday.
He loathes talking about his next start, much less what might happen in 21/2 seasons.
He will turn 37 during the 2008 World Series.
Before addressing game-related questions following his outing Friday against the Marlins (his first loss this season), Martinez had engaged Rojas in an animated discussion. He repeatedly has stated his dislike of ESPN, with which he has had a long-running feud predating his Mets arrival.
When addressing the report yesterday, he went so far as to say: "It's ESPN. What do you expect?"
Martinez complained about hip stiffness during Friday's start, which he said resurfaced because he slipped in the clubhouse between innings.
"It's a little sore, but it's good," Martinez said of the ailment.
He then went to get treatment from a trainer, joking that he was going to be treated like a "princess."