DID Bert Blyleven ever lock you in a laundry basket?

No? Then you probably didn’t have as much fun growing up as Brett Harper.

How could you? The Brooklyn Cyclones infielder spent most of his adolescence roaming major-league clubhouses alongside his dad, Brian, a 16-year major leaguer who won a World Series ring with the Twins in 1991.

“He was at the ballpark with me all the time,” says Brian, who now manages the Angels’ rookie-league club in Mesa, Ariz. “Kirby [Puckett] would mess around with him. Bert would lock him in the laundry basket. They had fun.”

Ten years later, you might say Brett has inherited the family business. He roams his own clubhouse in KeySpan Park, where his versatility and personality have made him a fan favorite.

The coaches rotate Harper between third base and first, and depending on what position he’s playing, Harper rotates his assortment of spikes. As a result, he changes shoes more often than your girlfriend.

“I wear my plastic ones at third because they’re low-top and a little light,” he says. “I wear high-top metal ones at first. Just need to be a little quicker at third.”

You also might notice that the 21-year-old sports eye black – which is designed to ward off strong sunlight – at all times. Doesn’t matter if it’s cloudy, if it’s raining, if he has a photo shoot. Like many big leaguers, he just likes the stuff.

Hey, it comes with the territory. Most kids watched cartoons and played Wiffle ball after school. Harper did that, too, except he did it with, say, Puckett.

Following a distinguished high-school career in Scottsdale, Ariz., Harper was selected in the 45th round of the 2000 Draft. He played for Scottsdale C.C. before signing with the Mets last spring.

As a ballplayer, Harper displays similarities to his dad, including a penchant for late development and a use-the-whole-field hitting philosophy.

But Brian made sure to give his son an edge he never had when he played.

“When he was born, I was in Pittsburgh platooning with Mike Easler,” Brian says, “and one of us would play against lefties and the other against righties. Mike, a lefty, got 400 at-bats, and I got 120. When Brett was born, I said, ‘If he ever gets in a platoon, he’s going to be a left-handed hitter.’ So I put a bat in his left hand.”

They say that baseball connects fathers and sons, that it’s a link from one generation to the next. That’s how it is with Brian and Brett Harper.

And that’s what the game’s all about.