Baseball season's almost here and some thing never change: the Mets' two highest paid outfielders are Bobby Bonilla and Jason Bay, you probably couldn't name who their catcher is without Googling it, and Johan Santana will likely miss the final year of his $137.5 million contract. But hey, it could be worse: the Mets could be the Marlins!
The latest news on Santana broke last night with reports that he had suffered a probable re-tear of the anterior capsule in his left shoulder, requiring season-ending surgery. "If this diagnosis proves to be correct, I think in all likelihood Johan will be lost to the Mets for the season," GM Sandy Alderson said. Santana, 34, missed the entire 2011 season because of his first shoulder surgery, which took him 19 months to recover from. But just like with Bonilla and Bay, the Mets will be paying him regardless of whether he throws a baseball this year: according to the Times, Santana will make $25.5 million in his sixth and final year with the team.
But let's look on the bright side: as the Times points out, the Mets have pretty low expectations for this season. They weren't really expecting Santana, who had a terrible second half of the 2012 season, to contribute that much (to Santana's apparent ire). And as the Daily News notes, Santana is responsible for the first no-hitter in Mets history! “I don’t think I’ve ever thrown a no-hitter in video games,” Santana said that night. Who knows when they'll be another one.
So Santana will likely end his Mets career with a 46-34 record, 3.18 ERA, and 607 strikeouts. While you debate with yourself whether Santana was worth that huge contract in 2008, relive his greatest moment with the Mets with the videos above and below.
