PORT ST. LUCIE — Cal Ripken Jr. can stay retired — the Mets don’t need him.
But in trying to project what Ruben Tejada might be at shortstop this season, general manager Sandy Alderson would gladly take what the 24-year-old Tejada provided in his first two full major league seasons.
“We don’t need him to be Cal Ripken Jr.,” Alderson said, referring to the Hall of Fame shortstop. “What we need from Ruben is the way he played for us the first year or so he was in the big leagues. If he can be the Ruben from 2011 and 2012 offensively. If he can get on base at a reasonable clip, get back to the line drives that he’s known for.”
Tejada had a strong season in 2011, with a .360 on-base percentage. The following year his on-base percentage dipped to .333 and last year was a disaster at .259.
“We have an open mind at this point in camp,” Alderson said.
The Mets continue to monitor other “options” at shortstop, according to Alderson, which include free agent Stephen Drew. The Mariners have also made it clear to teams that Nick Franklin is available.
Bartolo Colon had tightness in a calf muscle and was excused from workouts. Eric Young Jr. also missed drills because of what manager Terry Collins described as “tightness” in his side.
“This time of camp you just take precautions and make sure they don’t push it too hard,” Collins said.
Dillon Gee, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Noah Syndergaard and Jenrry Mejia are among the pitchers scheduled for today’s intrasquad scrimmage at Tradition Field. The scrimmage is expected to last 7 ¹/₂ innings.