Murphy's job in left for Mets

Daniel Murphy is the Mets starter in left field, according to manager Jerry Manuel. Murphy was expected to platoon with Fernando Tatis, but instead Tatis will likely share time with Ryan Church in right field.

"I don't want him to get into a strictly platoon situation," Manuel said. "I think he's a little better player than that. Also, with Church being a lefthanded hitter, I kind of see Murphy being a better hitter right now at this time, so Tatis could go that way [in rightfield]. It all depends on how well they're doing. If they're not getting hits, they're not going to play. Development or whatever, they've got to perform."

That's the one caveat with Murphy: He's only 23 and essentially was promoted straight from Double-A Binghamton last season. Murphy played one game at Triple-A New Orleans before he joined the Mets in Houston and started that same night against the Astros at Minute Maid Park.

This smacks of taking pressure off a young man the Mets would like to see succeed. Or does it put more pressure on Murphy? Either way, the Mets want him to win the job, but if he doesn't, this could be a three-way platoon with Tatis switching from left to right on a given day.