NEW YORK (AP) &045; Pedro Martinez, welcome to New York.

Martinez passed his physical Wednesday, and the Mets finalized their $53 million, four-year contract with the pitcher they hope will take them to the postseason.

The Mets scheduled a news conference for Shea Stadium on Thursday to introduce Martinez, who turned down a $40.5 million, three-year offer from the Boston Red Sox and told his agent Monday to work out a deal with New York.

The total guaranteed value of his contract was obtained by The Associated Press from a baseball official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Martinez, a 33-year-old right-hander, has had shoulder problems at times. He had a physical in New York and passed it, Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said.

Earlier at a children’s holiday benefit at Shea Stadium, Mets general manager Omar Minaya avoided questions about the agreement. Dressed in a red turtleneck shirt with a Mets’ blue and orange Santa hat in his hand, he said the team generally asks all players with a history of injury to have an MRI exam, saying an exception would be &uot;pretty rare.&uot;