OF Martinez hoping to finally make it

JUPITER, Fla. -- If Carlos Beltran's knees aren't ready for Opening Day, someone else will have to play rightfield for the Mets.

Willie Harris? Scott Hairston? Lucas Duda?

How about Fernando Martinez? That's right, Fernando Martinez still is with the Mets. Still a prospect, but not a top one anymore at the not-quite-ready-for-AARP age of 22.

He's fully aware of how invisible he's become.

"A couple of people said, 'Hey, Fernando, you're still here?' " Martinez said Thursday morning at the Mets' minor-league complex in Port St. Lucie. " 'It's good to see you.' "

Martinez has been with the Mets since signing for a $1.4-million bonus as a 16-year-old in July 2005. The Mets were not alone in liking Martinez. "Best player in Latin America that year," a rival general manager said Thursday.

Ten days after signing, Martinez came to Shea Stadium and took batting practice. With the entire Mets front office watching, he hit balls over the fence in every part of the ballpark.

Executives, players and coaches marveled at the raw power of the lefthanded hitter from the Dominican Republic.

Manager Willie Randolph called him "a baby, an infant. What is he, 16 years old? That's amazing."

Said Martinez: "That day was very exciting for me. Very exciting. It was nice just to see Jose Reyes, Beltran, Pedro Martinez. I remember seeing those guys on TV."

Well, Randolph is gone, as is former general manager Omar Minaya, who signed Fernando Martinez at a time when the Mets were bustling with optimism about a planned Latin American talent pipeline. Shea Stadium, the park that couldn't hold Martinez, is gone, too.

Martinez is still here. Still trying to get through a season without getting hurt, something he has never done. He has averaged 77 games a season between the majors and minors. "Sometimes I think in my mind, 'What happened to me?' " he said. " 'Why did I have so many injuries?' "

So many. A knee that needed surgery and now is arthritic. Hamstring. Back. Broken bone in his hand (another surgery).

"The thing for me is to stay healthy," he said. "No more injuries. I'm ready to go. I'm ready to play every day. I don't have any problem in my knee, my body. Everything's OK."

Martinez made his big-league debut at 20 in 2009. He wasn't ready, not nearly, and got grief for not running out a ball in his second game. He also failed to impress during an 18-at-bat tease last season. Career major-league numbers: 109 at-bats, .174 average, one home run.

But he can hit in spring training: .333 in 2009, .383 in 2010 and .364 in 2011 after going 1-for-2 with a walk and two runs scored Thursday in the Mets' 9-4 win over the Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium.

"He's still 22 years old," Reyes said. "He's got a lot of baseball left. He's just got to stay out of the training room."

If Martinez is not in Miami on April 1, he'll start the season with Triple-A Buffalo. With Beltran likely to leave after the season, the Mets will have an opening in rightfield for 2012.

But Martinez can't think about that. He can't honestly say he feels all that confident about 2011.

"My confidence?" he said, before pausing. "I don't know. I feel good. I feel good."