Former Brooklyn Cyclone Ike Davis, a first-round draft pick who spent his inaugural professional season roaming the lush green grass of Coney Island’s KeySpan Park in 2008, may wind up playing some first base for the parent-club New York Mets at CitiField as early as next season.

Though he batted a mere .256 (55-for-215) with no homers, 15 doubles, 17 RBIs and 17 runs scored during a 58-game stint with Brooklyn the summer before last, Davis has since emerged as perhaps the top position player in the Mets’ Minor League system.

The 6-foot-5 Arizona State product turned 22 back in March and finally displayed the power at the plate that had the Mets drooling when they selected him with the 18th overall pick out of Arizona State in June 2008.

Davis batted a combined .298 with 20 homers, 31 doubles, 71 RBIs and 58 runs scored in 114 contests at Class A Advanced St. Lucie and Double-A Binghamton this year. He is currently hitting a sizzling .348 with four homers and 14 RBIs in 16 games in the exclusive Arizona Fall League (AFL), where the Majors’ top prospects go to hone their craft in the “off-season.�

Named one of the AFL’s Rising Stars earlier this month, the KeySpan Park favorite isn’t getting too far ahead of himself, however. With the Mets still fiddling with the idea of bringing back free agent first baseman Carlos Delgado, and Dan Murphy continuing his progress at the position, Davis is simply biding his time and boosting his overall game as the winter approaches.

“Next year, we’ll see what happens,� Davis told MLB.com earlier this week. “I’ll keep playing hard, let the people who make those decisions handle that.�

The Mets endured a brutal 2009 campaign, which saw them lose Delgado, center fielder Carlos Beltran, shortstop Jose Reyes, set-up man J.J. Putz, staff ace Johan Santana and countless others to significant injury time en route to finishing 70-92.

While Davis is still developing, it’s hard to imagine him being any more of a neophyte than Murphy appeared to be last season. A Cyclone in 2006, Murphy also blazed a quick path to the Majors, earning praise as a potential Wade Boggs-type.

Forced into action as Delgado’s replacement this year, Murphy hit .266 with 12 homers and 63 RBIs in 155 games — hardly the type of power numbers the Mets were hoping for from that position. But his defense and hitting improved throughout the campaign as did Davis’ down in the Minors.

Though he’ll likely being next season back in the Minors, Davis may push Murphy into the outfield or to the bench and Delgado out of town if he continues to show he can be the power-hitting first baseman of the future.

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