Calling up A.J. Ewing was a desperate move by the Mets.

Also, necessary.

That it was both helps define where the Mets are a quarter of the way through what has so far been a disaster movie. They have been listless and lifeless, and for the 251 games he has spent in the minors — 12 as high as Triple-A the past two weeks — Ewing has been an Energizer Bunny, capable of getting on base and then creating havoc once there.

Is the 21-year-old ready to provide a jolt? David Stearns said he is or else he wouldn’t have been in center field and hitting eighth Tuesday night for his MLB debut. But what else could the Mets president of baseball operations say?