Mets stuck with Tejada’s highs, lows

NEW YORK - The ball appeared to get by for a single to center when the New York Mets’ leader in errors entered into a slide and extended his left arm, hoping that it might find his glove. When it did, the shortstop calmly reset his feet, then unleashed a powerful throw that easily beat the Washington Nationals’ Kurt Suzuki to first base.

Ruben Tejada jogged off the field, but not before reliever Brandon Lyon greeted him with a highfive Sunday afternoon, a reward for a job well done.

These are the glimmers that keep the 23-year-old Tejada pressing on, the moments to which his supporters can point whenever the next error comes.

At this pace, there might be plenty of those, too.

Tejada has been charged with six errors in 17 games.

Only the Nationals’ Ian Desmond has committed more, with seven.

“I have to keep working, and I’ve stayed working hard to try to make the routine plays,” Tejada said. “I’m here, working hard, and the first thing I want to show is that I’m the same Ruben Tejada - right now with a couple of errors early in the season - but I don’t feel bad about that. It happens.”

The Mets have few alternatives but to stick with their shortstop. Though Justin Turner and Jordany Valdespin are on the roster, neither utilityman has proved he can play shortstop at a major-league level. Veteran Omar Quintanilla lingers at Class AAA Las Vegas, and though he has experience, he also brings doubts about whether he could handle the position every day.

So despite Tejada’s early-season lapses, Manager Terry Collins has remained a steadfast supporter.

“Once in a while, you’ve got to be patient, you’ve got to shake your head and say look, we know he’s going to get better,” said Collins, who interprets Tejada’s aggressive play as a sign that he hasn’t let the errors get into his head.

For all of Tejada’s faults with routine plays, he hasn’t looked tentative attempting difficult throws. Mets captain David Wright took things a step further, dismissing Tejada’s struggles as nothing more than an early-season defensive slump.

Said Wright: “We know what kind of defense he can play.”