And so it begins...

Mike Jacobs should have never been here in the first place. And with Chris Carter playing outfield and DH in AAA, and Daniel Murphy still a month or so away from returning, the logical move was made.

Your new first baseman: Ike Davis.

Omar Minaya said that Davis will not platoon, that you don't bring up someone like Davis to sit on the bench. He was getting AB's in Buffalo and he'll get that in Flushing, and he gets to make his debut in a 10-game homestand that could end up being a love-fest.

Omar also said that he doesn't expect Davis to be a savior. "I expect him to be Ike."

Hopefully, fans will take the same approach.

Davis is talented, to be sure. And while he tore it up in AAA, it was only 10 games. He is unquestionably the first baseman of the future, and should ultimately be the left-handed power source the Mets currently lack with Carlos Beltran (still not cleared for baseball activities) on the DL.

But this is really just a preview. When Murphy comes back, Davis should return to AAA to continue his development. Then again, if he has 8 home runs and is hitting .300, then the Mets will have one of those "good problems" and Davis could end up staying in place.

We'll worry about that later. For now, Davis is the man, we don't have to watch Jacobs anymore, and Jose Reyes gets a day off to rest and clear his head after a stressful and event-filled opening week with the team.

Everyone who has been clamoring for the Mets to play Davis have gotten their wish. Here's hoping they cut the kid some slack if he starts slowly.

And while the Mets are at it, they need to send Jenrry Mejia to Buffalo. They don't need him in the bullpen. They may very well need him to start later this season.

Guess we can shake up that lineup now

Wednesday's night extra-inning loss to the Marlins was one of those weird games. You felt good that the Mets came back from a five-run deficit, until you realized that the Mets made up that gap without actually getting any RBI hits.

The Marlins did everything they could to give the Mets the win, including walking and balking in two runs to tie the score in the bottom of the eighth, after Ricky Nolasco dominated for six innings. But the Mets gave Florida a gift of its own when Fernando Tatis tried to score on a not-that-wild pitch with two outs, the bases loaded and David Wright at the plate. Not a smart play.

So the Mets look to win the series Thursday night with Jon Niese on the hill, and with lefty Nate Robertson starting for Florida, there is a pretty good chance that Mike Jacobs will be on the bench. Unless Jerry Manuel wants to break up all those righties!

Jacobs looked awful again for most of game two, striking out twice in three at-bats before singling in the eighth. Of course, he gets some credit for sliding hard into second base, perhaps affecting the wild throw by Dan Uggla that scored Wright. But otherwise, Jacobs has looked like the player we all know him to be -- a free swinger who rips at everything and strikes out a ton.

I other words, a black hole in the cleanup spot.

I'll be at the game, so I'm hoping to see Angel Pagan in center and leading off, with a 3-4-5-6 of Wright-Bay-Francoeur-Tatis. Line up those right-handed hitters, Jerry!

As for Jennry Mejia, Keith Hernandez made an excellent point, noting that in his day, he paid close attention to how the young players striving to prove themselves or win a roster spot pitched, adding that the veterans gave him nothing. Florida has seen Mejia pitching at his best, and seen him a lot thanks to the spring training schedule. So when it was time to play for reals, they know exactly how to attack him.

You like to see the 97 on the gun, and maybe it was debut-night jitters, but Mejia's performance did nothing to alter the opinion of those -- myself included -- who think that Majia is better off in the minors, working on developing as a starter.

Which, looking at the rotation now, may be a much bigger need this season than bullpen help.

John Maine, hopefully, just needs some time to get comfortable and back to where he was prior to 2009. The fastball just was not there. He needs it back.

Let's all take a deep breath

So the Mets' opening day first baseman is going to be... Mike Jacobs.

Sigh.

To me, Jacobs is a DH and has no business in the National League, but his presence as a starter is sadly unavoidable, thanks to the knee injury suffered by Daniel Murphy. In fact, of all the Mets' health issues, the Murphy injury bothers me the most, even more than those concerning Jose Reyes or Carlos Beltran.

Why? Because we knew Beltran was going to be out until sometime in May, and as for Reyes, making opening day was always a long shot, so if he misses the first week, no big deal. He'll be back 100%.

Murphy's injury, besides being a setback for the man himself, served to revisit the idea of Ike Davis making the big club. Like Jennry Mejia, Davis tore it up in spring training to the point that many people, especially media folks, clamored for the Mets to bring the kids to Flushing.

That's a mistake for both players, even with Murphy's injury.

Yes, Davis looked great in camp. He hit some bombs. He is the first baseman of the future, no question about it. But he hasn't played above AA, and in just a couple of minor league seasons, he hasn't proven he can hit lefties or breaking pitches consistently. Like Fernando Martinez, the Mets want to see Davis get at-bats at the AAA level and continue developing. There is no doubt that both of them -- health permitting, of course -- are going to be solid major league players.

As for Mejia, I fear the Mets are going down the Joba path. Mejia has been a starter. He has ridiculous stuff. I'm sure he would do great in the bullpen, but so soon? His minor league numbers have been pedestrian, and we all know that spring training stats mean nothing once the season starts.

Even if he isn't the eighth-inning guy, why throw him into the MLB fire now? Let's say he gets lit up -- why risk damaging his confidence? Plus, he is a starter and several scouts have pegged him as a No. 1 or No. 2 guy. Best to let him develop in the minors, because that kind of a starter is infinitely more valuable than a reliever, regardless of the state of your current bullpen.

Think about Mariano Rivera. He used to be a starter. That didn't work out, and then he was sent to the bullpen. Let's give Mejia a chance to start. If not, fine -- maybe he becomes a dominant reliever after all.

Of course, Omar Minaya and Jerry Manuel need the team to win now, and so Mejia may very well be in the bullpen to start the season. I'd rather see Feliciano and Takahashi share setup duties.

Murphy, meanwhile, has to feel lower than a snail's belly these days. He had an awful spring, and then he gets hurt in an avoidable baserunning mistake. Now we're stuck with Jacobs at first base, and you know he's going to homer on opening day. Which, if it helps the Mets win, would be great. But Jacobs is not the answer. At all.

It's pretty messy. But did we expect anything less?