New York Mets

Recently, Terry Collins has surprised everyone by naming Luis Hernandez his starting second baseman. Hernandez is a young switch-hitter who has nice ability at the plate, but has had limited time in the major leagues.

The latest news out of Port St. Lucie is that Luis Hernandez has won the job at second base and is manager Terry Collins' choice to be the Opening Day starter.

Regardless of whether or not Sandy Alderson allows this to happen, one thing is certain:

It looks like Daniel Murphy is on the move to a new position. AGAIN.

What has become an everyday soap opera finally has an ending.

The New York Post is reporting that Mets manager Terry Collins has finally made a decision about who will be at second base on Opening Day.

Since the start of spring training, four names have been discussed: Daniel Murphy, Luis Castillo, Justin Turner and Brad Emaus.

You could make a case for any one of those players.

Jason Bay had a disappointing first season in New York last year, and if the Mets offense is going to be any better this year, they need Bay to have a bounce-back season.

Clearly, Bay is capable of having a big season at the plate. He’s done it in the past with the Pirates and Red Sox numerous times.

I’ve spent a few days in Port St. Lucie this week to watch the Mets play in spring training and I have to admit, it’s troubling to see how badly Bay is struggling right now.

On April 19, 2010, rookie first baseman Issac Benjamin Davis made his first appearance in an MLB regular-season game for the New York Mets. What did Ike do in his first at-bat at Citi Field versus the Chicago Cubs' Randy Wells? Drop one into right field.

Oh, and received one of the biggest ovations in recent Mets history. It was a single, so simple a hit that if it were made by any other man on that roster, they would have received a standard applause.

On the heels of a recent story in the North Bergen Record by Steve Popper and Bob Klapisch, New York Mets fans are ready to pack it in already.

Let's face it though: Most Mets fans have already packed it in, but there were a few still hanging on.

The article published yesterday cites unnamed members (as usual) of the Mets organization. It claimed that they're ready to shut Johan Santana down completely because he has not been progressing as he continues to rehab his surgically repaired shoulder.

The buzz in New York this morning is that Johan Santana's season is in jeopardy for the Mets. Steve Popper and Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record penned the story which appeared on the NorthJersey.com website.

The article includes extraordinary quotes from an unnamed Mets source, surrounded by stock information readily available about the plan to get Santana back on the mound by mid-summer.

The Mets have a the fifth largest payroll in baseball. They have a shiny new stadium, they play in the largest market in America and have a roster loaded with talent.

For all this, the Mets are terrible. In every way imaginable.

New York Mets star hurler Johan Santana is the anchor of the staff, a leader in the clubhouse, and represents the largest annual salary on the payroll.

They depended on him to set the tone and at times carry the team on his back down the stretch. The organization already knew he would miss most, if not all, of the first half of the 2011 MLB season, but uncertainties have now transformed directly into widespread fears.

With less than three weeks before the New York Mets' Opening Day, the battle for second base rages on, and it appears that the two leading candidates emerging are the much maligned Luis Castillo and the resilient, but still learning, Daniel Murphy.

I'll start with Murphy.