Make-The-Mets-O-Meter: Position Players, Week 1

Earlier today, we looked at the pitchers trying to make the Mets, and now it's time for our first look at the position players. There are a few obvious locks on the Mets' 40-man roster: David Wright, Ruben Tejada, Ike Davis, and John Buck. Throw in Daniel Murphy, too, so long as he's healthy in time for Opening Day. Assuming the team uses a five-man rotation and seven-man bullpen, the Mets will have eight roster spots open for the position players listed below.

Player		Comment
Mike Baxter, OF		Although he's incredibly likely to make the team, Baxter has been ice cold at the plate early in spring training.
Brian Bixler, UTIL		A potential candidate for King of Spring Training, Bixler has hit the hell out of the ball. But before you get too excited — or excited at all — have a look at his minor league track record.
Andrew Brown, OF		Signed as a potential under-the-radar replacement for Scott Hairston, Brown hasn't shown much yet with the bat.
Marlon Byrd, OF		Speaking of King of Spring Training candidates, Byrd has been excellent at the plate through 13 plate appearances. His primary competition to make the team `figures to be Brown, and he's got a leg up right now.
Juan Centeno, C		One of a few catchers theoretically vying for a spot to back up John Buck, Centeno has not seen much game action.
Collin Cowgill, OF		Things couldn't be going much better for Cowgill in his early days with the Mets, as he's hit .500/.556/.875 in seven games. Even his spring training numbers will come down to earth, but he has a great shot to make the team.
Travis d'Arnaud, C		Like Zack Wheeler, d'Arnaud's incredibly unlikely to make the team because it would cost the Mets a year of team control to put him on the Opening Day roster. Also like Wheeler, he's been impressive so far.
Matt den Dekker, OF		Even his 12-at-bat sample is a good summary of den Dekker at this point in his career — great defense, poor hitting with way too many strikeouts.
Lucas Duda, LF		Duda's been penciled in to the everyday left field gig, and he's shown some early power, a big concern after he broke his wrist early in the offseason.
Wilmer Flores, IF		Flores hit a home run against the University of Michigan and has looked okay at second base, but he's barely hit against big league teams in spring training.
Reese Havens, 2B		Havens hasn't played much yet, and he could get cut from the team's 40-man roster when other moves are made for Opening Day.
Brandon Hicks, IF		With a great walk rate, Hicks has made up for other parts of his game, but he hasn't stood out from the backup infield crowd.
Jamie Hoffman, OF		Perhaps a forgotten man in the battle for outfield roster spots, Hoffman has one home run to his credit but not a ton else.
Juan Lagares, OF		His bat's been quiet, and he's a lot more likely to get everyday playing time in the minors than open the year as a backup on the Mets.
Zach Lutz, IF		Like he's done throughout his minor league career, Lutz has hit very well in spring training. Depending on how many infielders the team intends to carry, he could easily be a power right-handed bench bat with the ability to back up Ike Davis and David Wright.
Kirk Nieuwenhuis, OF		Kirk's strikeouts and knee injury make him look a lot less certain to make the team than he did at the outset of spring training
Landon Powell, C		In the limited time that he's played, Powell hasn't shown much, but then again, no catcher not named Buck or d'Arnaud really has, either.
Cesar Puello, OF		Not really considered one of the candidates for an outfield gig on the Mets' roster right now, no matter how wide open that part of the roster looks.
Omar Quintanilla, SS		Already somewhat of a known quantity to the Mets, Q has flashed some bat in the early going and is at least a capable defender at short who can back up Ruben Tejada.
Anthony Recker, C		With the best performance of the backup catchers to this point — 1.600 OPS — it's more important to note that Recker has just 6 spring training plate appearances.
Josh Satin, IF		Satin and Lutz are pretty damn similar at this point, and Satin has been no slouch with the bat in spring games. If the two of them are battling for a bench spot, that's probably a good thing for the Mets this year.
Wilfredo Tovar, IF		He's hit well in limited time, but young players are so often given full-time roles in the minors if there's any chance of further development. Tovar is still just 21 and hasn't played above Double-A yet.
Justin Turner, IF		Justin Turner keeps doing Justin Turner things, hitting a very Turner-esque .308/.357/.308 in five games. His name briefly came up in trade rumors, but even if a trade doesn't come to fruition, he could be cut if the Mets decide to go with fewer backup infielders and more backup outfielders.
Jordany Valdespin, 2B/OF		This might be the only time you can load up the mets.com stats page and see a .444 OBP next to Valdespin's name.