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Ike Davis hadn’t even gotten to Citi Field yesterday, but his presence was already being felt.
“He’s not being asked to be the guy or shoulder the load,” Jason Bay said before the highly-touted prospect made his major league debut in a 6-1 win over the Cubs. “He’s being asked to complement the lineup. That’s easier said than done.”
Especially considering how feeble the Mets’ offense has been. But he was actually able to do that last night, as Angel Pagan gave the Mets a 3-1 lead in the seventh inning with a two-run home run, which was followed later in the inning by RBI hits by Bay and, yes, Davis in a five-run inning.
The Mets fans were on their feet even before he took the plate. Davis also had a single to right in his first at-bat.
“It was cool, the crowd actually knowing who I was,” said Davis, who understands how tough Mets faithful can be. “I expect to do my job. If I don’t I’m the first to criticize myself. This was a good way to start.”
Pagan’s blast helped give the Mets a much-needed victory and made Davis’ debut a success — for one night, anyway.
Despite his lack of experience at the major league level, the combination of his success in the minors, coupled with the Mets’ dire need for offensive production, should put a glaring spotlight on the 23-year-old first baseman as the team started a crucial 10-game homestand.
“I think I put more expectations on myself than I let you guys do,” said Davis, the son of former Yankee pitcher Ron Davis. “I’ve gotta go out there and perform. Just go out there, swing hard, hopefully hit it.”
That’s more than the Mets have gotten out of the position so far this year, where Mike Jacobs and Fernando Tatis formed an anemic platoon that helped force the move to bring Davis up.
After a torrid spring training, Davis hit .364 with a pair of homers and four RBIs for Triple-A Buffalo, while Daniel Murphy — who was supposed to be at first this season — continues to recover from a knee injury suffered during spring training.
Davis was informed of the move about an hour before he was scheduled to bat cleanup for Buffalo yesterday.
“You have to make adjustments,” general manager Omar Minaya said, adding that he started thinking about making the move last week.
Minaya also made it clear that the job was Davis’ alone . . . for now.
“We didn’t bring him up here not to play every day,” Minaya said.
The Mets can only hope that he’s more productive than Jacobs, who was designated for assignment on Sunday.
“When you struggle in this area . . . you kind of roll the dice,” said manager Jerry Manuel, calling the struggles at first base and the left side of the plate a “glaring weakness.”
“I don’t see him as the savior of the deal,” Manuel said. “I see him as a good complement to what we have.”
And Manuel also wants to manage the expectations being placed on the lefty.
“We have to let him get his feet on the ground,” Manuel said.