Jason Bay is hitless in his last 23 at-bats. He does not have a hit in the month of June. He has a .585 OPS, second lowest of any position player on the Mets’ roster — ahead of only Nick Evans, who has 12 at-bats. And nearly every day Bay plays left field, purportedly an offensive position.

Before yesterday’s game, Terry Collins said he planned to be patient with Bay and did not intend to change or limit the outfielder’s role.

The managerial vote of confidence is a good thing, but I hope that behind closed doors Collins, Dave Hudgens and whoever else need be consulted are considering solutions beyond just leaving Bay in the lineup and hoping he comes around. It’s not like Bay was hitting before the current ofer stretch, and it kills the club to carry a massive hole in the middle of the lineup every night.

Problem is, there’s no obvious answer. A vision test? A few days off to rest his body and clear his mind? One of those phantom Ollie Perez injuries and a rehab stint? A Steve Trachsel voluntary jaunt to the Minors?

I’m no hitting coach and I’m not in Bay’s head. But man, at some point something’s got to give. Lucas Duda keeps destroying the ball in Triple-A. Getting Bay straightened out should be the club’s top priority, but if the Mets are serious about winning baseball games, it’s soon going to become impossible for them to maintain that Bay is their best everyday option to play left field and bat in the middle of their lineup.

I hate to sound reactive and impatient, especially over a guy with so much evidence to show he really can crush Major League pitching — hard as that is to believe with how he’s going right now. But it sure seems like whatever the Mets and Bay are doing to fix the problem isn’t working.