Daniel Murphy will not be in the Opening Day starting lineup, but being in uniform nonetheless feels good, even if he was beaten out by Brad Emaus for the starting second-base job.

Murphy -- who turns 26 Friday -- was poised to be the Mets’ first baseman last season when a medial collateral ligament injury in his right knee during the final week of Grapefruit League games sent him to the DL instead. Murphy then was the victim of a dirty takeout slide in June while transitioning to second base at Triple-A Buffalo. He had a season-ending strain of the same ligament and never did appear in the majors last year.

His last big league game: Oct. 4, 2009.

“This is something I’ve been looking forward to since the second I got hurt,” Murphy said. “I feel like there’s been a lot of hard work put into this. I’m very appreciative of this organization for not giving up on me, having enough faith in me to allow me to work back, and also the confidence that they think I can help us win.”

Murphy will be the primary left-handed hitter off the bench.

Asked if there was disappointment in not being named second baseman, he said: “Not at all. I’ve said this from the beginning -- that the organization as a whole was going to run the best eight out there that they thought they had. The fact that they think I’m one of the best 25, it puts things in perspective of what I had to go through last year. It’s also a long season. I think if I continue to prepare myself, eventually my name is going to be called. And all I can do is try to continue to be prepared for that.”

In addition to pinch-hitting, Murphy would see his most action at second base, with some dabbling at the corner infield positions if Ike Davis or David Wright needs a day off.

Mets fans may remember Murphy's ill-fated 2009 dabbling in left field, which included a misplay of a Cody Ross shot during the season-opening road trip that Johan Santana candidly said cost the Mets a 2-1 defeat against Josh Johnson. It’s unlikely Murphy will start a game anytime soon there, but the Mets are trying to make Murphy as versatile as possible by having him dabble there again.

He played one minor league exhibition game in right field last weekend, and was slated to start there in Monday’s Grapefruit League game, which ended up getting rained out.

“I got one play,” Murphy said about his chances in the minor league game. “I caught it. I was able to get it into the cutoff man. I didn’t feel foreign out there. I’ve enjoyed the work that [outfield coach] Mookie [Wilson] and I have been able to do. He has a little bit different philosophy -- some stuff that I think is actually a little better suited for my skill level out there. He’s all about being relaxed. You’re not going to be able to get behind every single ball. But, first and foremost, we’ve got to catch it. I think it’s really been helpful in the couple of sessions we’ve had so far.

“You work hard to try to get behind it and try to make a good throw and get it into the cutoff man. But sometimes the ball won’t allow you to do that. Also, the other thing he’s talked to me a lot about is not panicking when the ball is in the air. I think, as we’ve seen, I got out there and I looked like it was a big panic. He’s really big on being relaxed, on making the plays you can make. You’re not going to be able to be every place at once. I’ve really actually taken to quite a lot of the stuff he’s given me early on in the work out there.”