Daisuke Matsuzaka who once was “one of the best in the world,”

Daisuke Matsuzaka who once was “one of the best in the world,” according to manager Terry Collins, was hit hard early in a 6-1 loss to the fearsome Detroit Tigers Friday night at Citi Field.

He allowed five runs in the first 12/3 innings, including a long solo home run by Torii Hunter in the first and an absolute bomb by Miguel Cabrera in the second. Cabrera’s three-run shot came one pitch after Hunter hit an RBI double that one-hopped over the centerfield wall.

“I was a little bit more nervous than I expected to be,” Matsuzaka said through a translator. “The home runs and the runs and the hits that came those two innings woke me up, and from the third inning on, I was able to settle down and go back to what I’ve worked on in the minor leagues this year and [it] convinced me that I can keep major-league hitters off the bases. Unfortunately, the first two innings decided the game, so it wasn’t how I wanted it to go.”

Matsuzaka cost the Red Sox $103 million in posting fees and salary after he came over from Japan in 2007. This year, he was toiling in Cleveland’s minor-league system after going 1-7 with an 8.28 ERA for Boston in 2012.

The Mets signed the 32-year-old Thursday and handed him Dwight Gooden’s No. 16 and an immediate start. Matsuzaka, who went 18-3 with a 2.90 ERA for Boston in 2008, was pitching on three days’ rest after starting for Triple-A Columbus on Monday. He was 5-8 with a 3.92 ERA for Columbus before activating an out clause in his contract when the Mets came calling.