Major League Baseball

Mets doomed to more mediocrity

Published Mar. 15, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

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The big debate here is whether Luis Castillo, Luis Hernandez, Daniel Murphy, Justin Turner or Brad Emaus will start at second base for the New York Mets on Opening Day.

My question: Does it matter?

Mid-March predictions often look foolish in retrospect, but here’s one I’m confident will stand up: The success (or failure, more likely) of the Mets in 2011 will have very little to do with whether Castillo sticks around for another six months of jeering at Citi Field.

It’s simple: The Mets are doomed to yet another sub-par season because they lack the impact talent to compete in the National League East. One veteran scout, in fact, believes they will finish last in the division.

Mets fans had reason to be encouraged Tuesday, with a 5-2 home victory over Washington and a solid outing by No. 4 starter Chris Young. The starting rotation could be OK, but there is just a slight problem with that: The Phillies and Braves are much better than OK.

We can’t say the Mets’ most talented players are underperforming, because they aren’t performing at all. This year, ace Johan Santana and right fielder Carlos Beltran will combine to earn more than $40 million in base salary. Right now, neither is healthy enough to play.

Santana will miss the start of the season — and probably much longer than that — while recovering from left shoulder surgery. Beltran, meanwhile, hasn’t played in 10 days because of his troublesome knees. He has three at-bats this spring. Manager Terry Collins said Beltran should resume “baseball activity” within the next couple days, but batting practice and playing catch aren’t the issues for him. Staying in the lineup is.

And if Beltran’s knees couldn’t withstand the rigors of one Grapefruit League game, what leads the Mets to believe he can last over 162?

I can’t see how he would be ready by Opening Day.

“You obviously want him out there,” third baseman David Wright said. “But at the same time, we’ve got guys that are very capable of stepping up and getting the job done.”

I assume Wright was referring to Lucas Duda, Scott Hairston and Willie Harris. All three are hitting respectably this spring, but none is Beltran in his prime.

Beltran’s iffy status wouldn’t be such an issue if the Mets had a lineup teeming with reliable run producers. Wright is coming off a solid season and went 2 for 2 on Tuesday, but Jason Bay has one extra-base hit in 27 at-bats this spring. He drove in a run with his infield single on Tuesday, but it was only his second RBI.

Concerned?

“I’m not,” Collins said. “He’s working on some things (with his batting stance). He told me the other day that he’s getting a feel for this new thing he’s trying. I told him, ‘Be patient with it.’”

Bay is returning from a concussion that caused him to miss the final two months of a disappointing first season with the Mets. Given the new medical literature about head injuries, I am confident Mets fans will show great sensitivity toward Bay if he starts slowly. As in, they might wait until the third home game before starting to boo.

Come to think of it, Bay might want to lobby Collins to keep Castillo as the second baseman, lest the fan base find a new object of disaffection. As long as Luis is around, he will have exclusive rights to the title of Most Loathed Met.

And that’s sad. I understand that Castillo is no longer the player he was, but that merely places him in the same category as virtually every 35-year-old middle infielder in modern baseball history. Since arriving from Minnesota in a 2007 trade, he’s been about as productive for the Mets as he was for the Twins.

“A great dude,” said Mets righty Boof Bonser, who played with Castillo in Minnesota. “I can’t say any bad things about him. He’s just that good. Over there, he was leadoff for us, playing second base every day, making things happen, stealing bases, swinging, getting it done. And (here) it’s, ‘Wow, you’re not making the team? Why?’ It’s crazy.”

Castillo’s greatest sin in the eyes of Mets fans — other than dropping A-Rod’s popup — was accepting a $25 million contract extension he probably didn’t deserve. He played through knee and foot injuries during a disappointing 2010 season. For those transgressions, he was booed on Tuesday — multiple times, by the home crowd — in a manner I can’t recall any other player absorbing during a spring game.

At the moment, Castillo is hitting .280 and still listed on the whiteboard in Collins’ office, but the manager didn’t exactly give him a strong endorsement Tuesday.

“I don’t think there’s any need right now for me to play Luis at second base,” Collins said. “We all know he can play there. I want to watch the other guys.”

And there are four “other guys.”

“That’s what it is — I have to win the job,” Castillo said. “He (Collins) has to make a decision. I’m focused on playing hard. I want a chance to play every day.

“They want to see if I’m healthy and if I can still play. I don’t know what (else) he wants me to prove, but I’m ready. I’ve played this game for a long time. I know what I can do. I feel good.”

And what if he’s not the everyday second baseman? Could he fill a utility role?

“I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t think so. I’ve never played another position.”

Too bad. You know, I was just about to suggest he fill in for Beltran.

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