Tejada turns heads with four hits
New York Mets' Ruben Tejada hits a single during the fifth inning of Sunday's game against the Atlanta Braves. (April 8, 2012) Credit: AP
Suddenly, losing Jose Reyes to Miami doesn't sting quite as much for the Mets as it did in December. While Ruben Tejada in no way should be compared to Reyes, who signed a six-year, $106-million contract with the Marlins, he did a fairly good impression of his one-time mentor Sunday in the Mets' 7-5 victory over the Braves at Citi Field.
Tejada, who was 0-for-6 in the first two games of the series, had a career-high four hits, including two doubles, scored two runs and drove in two. He also did it from the leadoff spot, a role that he was forced into when Andres Torres was placed on the disabled list Friday after suffering a recurrence of his left calf strain.
"It's great," Tejada said. "It's a great day for me. It's a great day for the team. I feel really happy."
This year didn't begin quite as joyously for Tejada, who first irritated Terry Collins by not showing up early for spring training and then suffered a groin strain. The manager hoped to create some chemistry between the new full-time shortstop and Daniel Murphy, the still-learning second baseman, and those opportunities were limited some in spring training.
Offensively, Collins wasn't quite as concerned. The initial plan was for Tejada to bat in the eighth spot, as he did in Thursday's opener, and anything he did at the plate would be a bonus. Collins also knows that Tejada is a patient hitter, which would help him stay away from chasing in front of the pitcher's spot.
But the injury to Torres forced Collins to change the lineup, and that turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
The manager figured Tejada would hit -- if not as much as he did all at once Sunday.
"At the end of the first 10 days, if they're like 1-for-30 or something like that, it might be an issue," Collins said before the game of Tejada and the struggling Ike Davis. "But they won't be 1-for-30. I can assure you of that."
Collins was right in the case of Tejada, who looks as though he might hang on to the leadoff spot for the immedate future. The manager suggested before Sunday's finale that he soon might try Kirk Nieuwenhuis in the leadoff spot, if only to break up the lefthanded hitters in the bottom third of his lineup. But Tejada might have made him think twice.
"I feel ready for this season," Tejada said. "It's a long season, but I feel good."
