LAKELAND, Fla. – When it comes to the Mets choosing a No. 5 starter, consider yesterday a bit of foreshadowing.
While an ailing Orlando Hernandez was continuing his painfully slow pace back in Port St. Lucie, challenger Mike Pelfrey was here mowing down a Tigers lineup filled with All-Stars in the Mets’ Grapefruit League opener.
Working in unseasonably frigid temperatures, Pelfrey was terrific in a two-inning spring debut. The 6-foot-7 right-hander faced the minimum six batters, striking out one and allowing just one hit before giving way to Matt Wise with a 2-0 lead.
With right fielder Ryan Church the only projected regular on the trip, the Mets ended up dropping a 4-2 decision after the Tigers knocked around Willie Collazo in the seventh.
The outcome was an afterthought, though. Pelfrey’s continuing bid to unseat El Duque for the fifth spot was the day’s main storyline.
Staked to a 1-0 lead before he took the mound, Pelfrey cruised except for a single by Magglio Ordonez leading off the second. Even better, Pelfrey was aggressive with his fastball and stayed ahead of all but one of the batters he faced.
Pelfrey’s highlight was a swinging strikeout of second baseman Placido Polanco in the first on a slider, although he appeared more satisfied by the performance of his fastball.
“I’m a lot more confident this year,” Pelfrey said. “All of my pitches have gotten better. I want to be on this team, and I want to make their decision [about the fifth starter] difficult.”
Willie Randolph liked what he saw from the 24-year-old prospect.
“He had a nice, little outing,” Randolph said. “It was quick, and he looked comfortable. The kid just needs to pitch and get some experience, because he’s got the stuff.”
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Hernandez threw what GM Omar Minaya described as “a very good bullpen session” on Tuesday but is no closer to making his first start or even tossing batting practice.
The perpetually fragile Hernandez’s slow pace this year is being dictated by right-foot pain and a recent root canal. As a result, Pelfrey is expected to get another start when fifth spot comes up in the rotation again.
“We’re not going to rush [Hernandez],” Minaya said. “He’s a veteran guy, and whenever he’s ready, we’ll use him. The senior guys always pitch less in spring training.”
Despite the woes, Minaya didn’t sound ready to give up on El Duque just yet.
“He had a very good bullpen [Tuesday], which is encouraging,” Minaya said. “He really had his off-speed stuff going.”
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For the second day in a row, minor-league first baseman Michel Abreu had a chance to be the Mets’ ninth-inning hero.
After hitting a two-run homer with two out in the bottom of the ninth Tuesday to forge a 4-4 tie with the University of Michigan, the Cuban-born Abreu came up with two on in the top of the ninth yesterday.
It wasn’t to be, though. Abreu grounded into a game-ending double play.
“You can’t do it every time,” he said.
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Not a good sign for the Tigers: A Mets lineup filled with backups roughed up Detroit starter Jeremy Bonderman. The veteran right-hander was touched for two earned runs and four hits in just two innings of work, including an RBI triple by non-roster third baseman Anderson Machado.
“The guys were getting some pretty good swings,” Pelfrey said.
EXHIBITION Tigers 4Mets 2