Terry Collins got more than he bargained for.
Since Daniel Murphy had started every game since the All-Star break, the Mets manager wanted to give him one day off. Instead, he got three.
With last night’s rainout against the Marlins at Citi Field and today’s off-day, Murphy will have had one at-bat in the past three days, having pinch-hit in Tuesday’s loss after being left out of the starting lineup.
Described by Collins as a “baseball junkie,” Murphy has played in 106 of 110 games but, now in his second full season, is still adjusting to the majors.
“I told him two days ago, ‘I don’t want you doing anything tomorrow’ and I came in the next day and he was running all over the field,” said Collins, describing his attempts to reduce Murphy’s workouts.
“It’s who he is. You cannot change people. You can try to temper it, but Dan Murphy is a good player because of what he is. The minute he changes that, he’s gonna be an average guy. I don’t want an average guy. I want him to be himself, but I want him to understand the process of what it takes to play 162 games.”
Slotted to bat third last night, Murphy should be in the starting lineup tomorrow to face the Braves and probable starting pitcher Tim Hudson, against whom Murphy is 2-for-7 (.286) in his career.
Murphy will look to continue his sensational surge, having hit .462 (18-for-39) over the past 10 games.
“I feel pretty good in there right now,” Murphy told The Post before the rainout. “I’m just trying to be as consistent as possible. I’m doing a good job repeating my swing, and once you do that you can kind of zone in on the pitches you want to hit.”
Since May 21, Murphy is hitting .360, the third-highest average in the majors. The 26-year-old infielder is batting .319, fifth in the National League, hitting .361 with runners in scoring position, sixth in the NL, and was fourth in the league with 28 doubles.
Murphy said his confidence at the plate has been consistently high this year.
“I think I have a better idea of what I can do up there, what pitches I can handle and what my limitations are,” Murphy said. “Hopefully, the more mature you get as a hitter, the more the game can slow down a bit. Each at-bat gets you closer to where you want to be.”