PORT ST. LUCIE — Carlos Beltran made his spring-training debut for the Mets yesterday. His teammates talked about how important his return was. Manager Terry Collins went so far as to call it “huge.”
The only person not particularly moved by the sign of progress seemed to be Beltran himself — not even after he scored from second base on a single, sliding home on those surgically repaired knees in a breath-holding moment for Mets fans.
“For me, it’s not that big a deal,” Beltran, who played DH yesterday, said shortly before heading to the field.
He went 1-for-3 with a run in a 6-5 win over Boston at Digital Domain Park.
Beltran has undergone three knee surgeries since October 2007, two on his right knee. He was limited to 64 games last year, 81 in 2009, and last week was switched from center field to right.
“I want to be out there, but it’s just spring training,” Beltran said. “To me, I’ll be excited when the season starts.”
More precisely, he doesn’t believe he will be able to prove much until he plays right, which likely won’t be for another week at the earliest.
“That will be a bigger step than being able to face a pitcher,” Beltran said. “It will take time, but I’ll get to where I want to be. Guys who try to do everything in spring training and worry about it are in trouble.”
Still, yesterday’s performance was noteworthy for Beltran, who turns 34 on April 24.
The switch-hitter lined a single to right in his first at-bat, from the left side, in the second inning. After advancing to second on a Jason Bay single, he scored on a single to right by Daniel Murphy— which caught plenty of people off guard.
“It surprised me a little bit, but I was happy to see he was confident enough to go,” GM Sandy Alderson said.
Third-base coach Chip Hale never hesitated in sending him.
“He did a tremendous job getting a jump,” Hale said. “If I see he has a good chance to score, I’m gonna send him. He’s physically ready to play. He’s running good.”
Beltran popped out to right in each of his next two at-bats, both from the right side, and said he was pleased with how his body responded.
“I was feeling tight, but no pain,” Beltran said of his scamper from second, adding that he was going about 80 percent.
Despite the fact that he’s not at full strength, his presence in the lineup made a difference to his teammates.
“It starts today,” Bay said before the game. “Carlos wasn’t himself last year. It would give this whole team an infusion to have him back at full strength. This season doesn’t all hinge on him, but our turnaround could definitely start there.”
Collins will talk to Beltran today to see if he can DH against the Tigers and get another three at-bats.
“I thought his bat looked good,” Collins said.
“It’s another benchmark,” Alderson said. “Hopefully, we can begin to accumulate benchmarks, and he’ll be ready to go at the beginning of the season. He looks to be right on track.”
“He’s a game-changer,” added Ike Davis, who homered yesterday. “You always want the pieces of the puzzle to be out there.”
And while Beltran minimized his return, Angel Pagan, whose locker is next to Beltran’s, said it was a more critical day for the veteran than he was letting on.
“He wants to be in a game,” Pagan said.
“This is something he’s been waiting for. That wasn’t the Carlos we know last year. Now is the time for him to show that he’s back.”
dan.martin@nypost.com