The Mets optioned Justin Turner to Triple-A today, thus ending — for now — the Justin Turner Lobby.

Paul DePodesta said something interesting in his Baseball Prospectus chat yesterday:

Our Opening Day roster is just that – a roster for Opening Day only. We can change it the next day and the day after and the day after. Though there’s a certain cache to the Opening Day roster, it’s really just one day in a long season. All that means is that the 2B job will probably continue to be a competition until somebody makes it their own, and I suspect somebody will.

Though I am still not convinced Brad Emaus is a better fit for the position than Turner, sending Turner down buys the Mets some time to determine if Emaus can be a long-term contributor to the team. It was the only way to keep both Emaus and Turner in the organization, so it is probably the most logical move.

If at some point it becomes clear that Emaus cannot handle the position — either offensively or defensively — the Mets can ship him back to the Blue Jays or find a spot for him on the bench and recall Turner. Going with Turner out of the gate would mean dispatching Emaus to Canada now.

If Emaus is going to start the bulk of games at second base, as most suspect, Daniel Murphy becomes the team’s primary left-handed bat off the bench. And that brings up a point I made to Matt Cerrone yesterday: Willie Harris becomes somewhat redundant on the roster.

Terry Collins has raved about Harris’ versatility, but Collins raves about practically everyone. It’s hard to envision a situation calling for a left-handed bat in which the team would choose Harris over Murphy (bunting?), and Scott Hairston gives the Mets a suitable fourth outfielder with plenty of experience (more than Harris) in center field. Harris can back up the infield positions too, but presumably the first call for all replacement-infielder needs will go to Chin-Lung Hu.

Most of the media has acted all spring as if Harris is a lock for the roster. Harris has an opt-out in his contract, so though he was signed to a Minor League deal he cannot be forced to accept an assignment to Buffalo. Internet legend Nick Evans, out of options, would have to pass through waivers to be sent to Triple-A.

If Carlos Beltran needs a week or two on the Disabled List to start the season, it buys the team some time to make a decision — the Mets could keep both Harris and Evans around, since presumably Hairston would be the stopgap in right field.

But if Beltran is ready to go by April 1, it seems to me (and I’ve said this before) like the team might be better served keeping Evans over Harris. Though Evans cannot boast quite the same defensive versatility or Major League resume as the veteran, he is seven years younger, locked up under team control for way longer and has more offensive upside.

I realize I’m once again quibbling over the 25th spot on the roster and that this season, it seems like the Mets’ front office might actually be thinking about these decisions more than I am. Perhaps they think Harris is the sparkplug that will catapult the Mets to contention, and Evans is doomed to a Hessmanian life of itinerant Triple-A mashing. But since neither is obvious, I’d rather see them go with the younger player and try to convince Harris to accept the Minor League assignment, knowing that he’ll likely get the first call when someone inevitably goes down with injury.

Isringhausen played catch on flat ground Tuesday and pronounced himself fit after taking what he said was “4-5 days off” because of inflammation in his elbow. The Mets had indicated Monday that Isringhausen was shut down for one day, but the pitcher said he took off more time, and his elbow was helped by taking anti-inflammatory medicine.

Isringhausen said he will throw a bullpen session Wednesday, have a day off and then resume pitching every other day as he tries to make the team as a reliever. Manager Terry Collins said he hoped to get Isringhausen into a game Wednesday, but then said he would discuss the pitcher’s schedule with Warthen.

– Anthony McCarron, N.Y. Daily News.

Look: I want Jason Isringhausen to make the Mets’ Opening Day roster. Isringhausen, with all the hope and hype surrounding him, played a vital role in the summer of 1995, one of my favorite years of Mets fandom. His return to the team would make for a great story, plus he has been an excellent reliever for much of his career. If he could pull it all together for one more season, he would be a very valuable cog in the Mets’ bullpen.

But the thing about Izzy, heck, the thing about most 38-year-old pitchers — not just the ones with Izzy’s lengthy medical history who haven’t thrown more than eight Major League innings during the Obama administration —  is there’s a pretty good chance he falls victim to injury at any time. This four-to-five day shutdown is not a big deal in Spring Training because Grapefruit League games are meaningless. But how often will Isringhausen need to be shut down for four to five days during the regular season?

Who knows? He says he feels good, apparently. We will know more after he throws a bullpen session today.

If Isringhausen makes the Major League roster, it will come at the expense of one of Pedro Beato, Manny Acosta and Pat Misch. Beato is a Rule 5 pick who would have to be returned to the Orioles, Acosta and Misch are out of options and would have to clear waivers to be sent to Triple-A. Though none of those relievers has anything like Izzy’s resume, they’re all more likely than Isringhausen to stay healthy for a full season, or, for that matter, a full month.

The Mets’ front office is, presumably, working with more information than I am. They should have a better sense of the severity of Isringhausen’s elbow inflammation, the potential of Beato, Acosta and Misch to help the club over a full season, and the chances that Acosta and Misch would clear waivers.

I guess the question is: Is Isringhausen, at 38 and basically four seasons removed from being an effective Major League reliever, going to hold up long enough and be so much better than Acosta (or pick any of the three) that it’s worth losing Acosta?

Maybe. Acosta and Misch are known quantities, and neither is likely to go all Cliff Lee on the National League in 2011. But they’re both decent enough to contribute to a big-league bullpen, and if Isringhausen’s not healthy he won’t be.

Oddly, the same man once prohibited from pitching at Shea now understands. A couple of years ago, while watching a Seattle Mariners game on TV, Sisk found himself irked by the performance of J.J. Putz, at the time a reliever with the club. Putz was scuffling to get through the inning, and Sisk thought his body language conveyed surrender.

“Then the weirdest thing happened,” he says. “I was all alone, but I started booing at my television. That’s when I realized what those fans felt with me.

– Jeff Pearlman, Wall Street Journal.

Good read about former Mets reliever Doug Sisk, perhaps the most hated man in Mets history.

Sisk actually posted a 117 ERA+ in his five year career with the Mets, but he allowed a ton of baserunners, many on free passes. He also holds the distinction — and I suppose this isn’t surprising — of being the first player I ever booed.

I’m pretty sure it was during introductions for Opening Day of 1987, the first game I ever attended. I was with my brother, uncle and grandfather, and when Sisk’s name was called everyone started booing. I don’t remember the exact details of the conversation, but I asked why we were booing, and either my brother or uncle said something along the lines of, “Because it’s f@#$ing Sisk!”

And so began a life of booing crappy Mets relievers.

If Mets ownership did what people seem to think they want–say nothing–the media would be hounding them night and day. WHAT ARE YOU HIDING? WHY WON’T YOU ISSUE A STATEMENT? WHY AM I SHOUTING? People would presume their guilt, even more so than they do now, I think. Because the family’s reputation is being attacked. How on earth could they not respond to this in some way? Of all people, Olney–a former reporter on the Mets’ and Yankees’ beat–should know this.

As for the charge raised by Lennon and others that the Mets are timing announcements like Castillo’s release and the now-officially-official release of Oliver Perez strategically for PR purposes, to that I’d say: Who cares? There isn’t a business in the world that doesn’t hold off on releasing news or making decisions official for PR reasons. At least not ones that want to stay in business. Why should the Mets be any different?

– Matthew Callan, Amazin’ Avenue.

I have started and not finished about five different posts explaining, essentially, why I do not often and will not often weigh in on the Wilpons’ financial saga on this site. Callan gets at a lot of the reasons here: Essentially, the Wilpons have backed into a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t scenario, and it has become difficult to see through the posturing from both sides in the pending lawsuit (now lawsuits) to ween out reality.

I’ll add that I have no inclination or particular aptitude for business. If I did, I’d probably be a businessman and perhaps making a lot more money right now. I like baseball and writing, among other things. I have a pretty awesome job that involves writing about baseball. This stuff, though it involves baseball because it is inextricably linked to the Mets, is not baseball.

Also, I am not an expert in business or law or anything besides sandwiches, really. And it strikes me that every single person involved at the level where stuff is actually happening — the lawyers, the trustees, the Wilpons, etc. — is both better informed and better qualified than I am to process the various details of this case. Presumably there are career financial lawyers working around the clock on it.

I’m not sure I trust the media outlets covering the story to present the full breadth of information in any accessible way, at least partly because — as I’ve said before — what little I do understand about it suggests that most of the articles published on the subject, especially in sports sections, entirely fail to grasp or even attempt to portray the nuance involved. Hell, I dedicate a good deal of space on this site to doubting and criticizing sports columns in newspapers. I’m not about to put much faith in the same columnists when they take on a much more complicated subject.

I will continue to occasionally link off to takes I find interesting and to news when something meaningful actually happens. But if you’re looking for much more, I’d suggest checking out just about every other outlet covering the Mets.