Johan Santana takes the mound today in a 1:05 PM start against the St. Louis Cardinals. Manager Terry Collins said Santana is expected to throw 90-95 pitches in the game.
In his last start, also against the Cardinals, Santana threw 69 pitches, 48 of them for strikes in what was his best pitched game of the spring. His impressive performance prompted Collins to say this:
“There are some minor steps, there are some baby steps and there are some giant steps. And today was a giant step forward.”
“Nobody’s come back from this operation,” Collins said. “We’re certainly hoping he’ll be the exception to that rule.”
Collins is confident that his ace will be ready come Opening Day. Another great performance by Johan today, and Collins might make it official.
Original Post 3/21
Johan Santana had a solid performance today in the Mets 2-1 loss against the Cardinals.
Santana tossed six strong innings and allowed just one run on six hits with a walk and six strikeouts. He threw 48 of his 69 pitches for strikes, effectively combining slider, changeup and fastball which was clocked in the 88-90 MPH range.
His performance today lowered his ERA to 3.38 for the Spring.
The Mets’ ace continues to impress and sometimes it even feels like he’s the healthiest person in camp, if you could believe that. Yesterday, Terry Collins said he feels Johan will be ready for Opening Day.
Santana is certainly one of the nicest surprises and best stories of the Spring for the Mets.
