El Duque's right foot a wild card

 
The Mets were to begin their final personnel deliberations Friday and Saturday. Mike Pelfrey is expecting to begin the regular season as a Triple-A pitcher. What Orlando Hernandez expects -- from the club and from his own body -- is an unknown. [link]

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Pelfrey vs. El Duque for Mets' fifth spot

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. - Heading into today's showdown with Mike Pelfrey in Fort Lauderdale for the No. 5 spot in the rotation, the Mets insist publicly that the job belongs to Orlando Hernandez.
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The leg kick is back!

Orlando Hernandez has completed a 1-2-3 first inning, but the kicker is this: His signature leg kick is back. Perhaps fighting through discomfort with a bunion on his right big toe is preferable to a totally reworked delivery.
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Game Recap: Orioles 4 -- Mets 3

In the battle for the fifth starter spot, it seems that El Duque has come out on top and will be in the rotation for the Mets to start the season. In a fitting finish to the game, Mike Pelfrey gave up three runs in the bottom of the ninth as the Orioles beat the Mets by a scored of 4-3.
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El Duque's Still the One

I was listening to the Rangers-Devils game on ESPN 1050AM, and during the news brief I heard the following tidbit at the end of the Mets' Spring Training recap:And Met GM Omar Minaya says the fifth spot in his starting...
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Photo of the Day: El Duque

Orlando Hernandez seemingly locked up the fifth starter spot today with a five-inning, one run performance. El Duque returned to his familiar high leg kick after spending most of spring working with a new delivery. As long as he can stay healthy and effective, I'll take it.
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The LoHud Mets BlogFifth starter decision not that hard
Of course, the Mets didn’t make a decision as to who their fifth starter would be, but Orlando Hernandez and Mike Pelfrey each had comments to suggest what the outcome would be. Hernandez: ``I feel good today. I don’t know about ...
MetsBlog.compostGame: Orioles 4 Mets 3
The Mets lost to the Orioles by the score of 4 to 3 today in Fort Lauderdale. Orlando Hernandez allowed one run, four hits, and one walk, while striking out two over five innings of work. He lowered his spring ERA to 6.75. Mike Pelfrey threw ...
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Well once again the two front runners for the fifth starters spot took the mound to try and prove their ready for the position. In the last several days Jorge Sosa, Nelson Figueroa, Brian Stokes and Claudio Vargas have all been discussed as ...
The Mets ReportPost Game: Mets 3 Orioles 4
Source: Wikipedia El Duque got the start today and went five innings giving up 4 hits and one earned run. Mike Pelfrey finished the game going 3.2 innings giving up 6 hits and 3 earned runs. I guess Omar Minaya was right… if El Duque is ...
Mike's MetsAnd Your Fifth Starter Is...
... Looking like El Duque, provided he still feels good tomorrow. Going back to a high leg kick, but with the modification of keeping his right foot flat on the ground, Hernandez pitched 5 successful innings against the Orioles. He allowed a run on 4 ...
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DUQUE CAN NAIL DOWN FIVE SPOT
PORT ST. LUCIE - The Mets expect to make Orlando Hernandez their No. 5 starter if El Duque shows he is healthy today in his final Grapefruit League start, a team source said yesterday. Hernandez has the upper hand over Mike Pelfrey, Jorge Sosa...
Mets' Hernandez sports new delivery (AP)
Orlando Hernandez has a new pain-free windup that looks like the high-kicking El Duque of old. Now the right-hander must wait to find out whether he has pitched well enough to secure the fifth spot in the New York Mets' starting rotation. ...
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The Mets’ final Grapefruit League stats are in the books. Here is the good … Average Fernando Martinez .340 Angel Pagan .329 Jose Reyes .328 Raul Casanova .306 Marlon Anderson .294 ERA Pedro Feliciano 0.00 Aaron ...
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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Orlando Hernandez looked more like El Duque on Friday when he returned to his high leg kick and handled the Orioles without much difficulty. But at this stage, with his delivery still in flux and only two Grapefruit League  ...
KICK BACK
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - The high leg kick was back, and so was El Duque. Orlando Hernandez reverted to trademark form in more ways than one yesterday against the Orioles. He appeared to pitch his way past Mike Pelfrey into the Mets' fifth and final...