Kuzul

I made it to Opening Day.This year, Opening Day meant more than most years, since I was the one that almost went on the DL. Instead, I stood on the field Monday in Milwaukee, looking at the steel roof above the green grass and loving that it was once again baseball season. It was an amazing feeling, talking with so many media friends and having everyone from Doug Melvin to Ryan Braun pausing to ask how I was feeling. Of course, there's a lot of injuries already around the league, which should be no surprise. Almost 20 percent of injuries occur in the spring. Even once Opening Day has come and gone, injuries tend to be a bit front-loaded. The reasons are obvious and inscrutable all at once, but the pattern has held for the decade we have data on and anecdotally for much longer.It's a long season, but for too ...

Have we seen the last of Johan Santana?It looks that way. The New York Mets revealed on Thursday that their star lefty has suffered a major shoulder injury for the second time in three years. The former ace will undergo surgery to repair a torn anterior capsule in his throwing arm on Tuesday, thus ending his season before it even got started.This surely signifies a disappointing conclusion to Santana's career with the Mets. The 34-year-old's contract only runs through 2013, and it's hard to imagine the club picking up his 2014 option.Beyond that, one doesn't need to be Inspector Sherlock Gadget to deduce that there's a strong likelihood Santana has thrown his last major league pitch. Coming back from his first shoulder surgery proved to be difficult enough. Coming back from this second one may prove impossible.If so, we're looking at the end of a remarkable career. If you'll follow ...

After not pitching in the 2009 World Baseball Classic while recovering from a knee injury, Johan Santana has apparently expressed interest in pitching for Team Venezuela in the 2013 World Baseball Classic, which will begin this March.According to Adam Rubin of ESPN, Santana will try to participate in the event once gets past a few obstacles he will have to go through, due to the time he spent on the disabled list at the end of the 2012 season.The only way Santana will be able to participate is if a World Baseball Classic committee approves of his participation once it's determined whether he will be healthy enough to pitch or not.However, if Santana is actually able to participate, it could be very risky for both himself and the Mets.Here are three reasons why Santana participating in the World Baseball Classic would not be wise.Begin Slideshow

With the recent news from ESPN's Adam Rubin that Johan Santana may have to miss a start, I think it's fitting to examine Santana's performance in 2012. Clearly his no-hitter is the hallmark of this season for the New York Mets. He made history for a team that has featured some of the top pitchers in the history of the game, none of whom were able to do what he did. However, since the magical night of June 1, when the course of history was changed, Johan Santana hasn't been the same. He threw 134 pitches that night, a mark no one thought was even remotely reachable coming into this season. Terry Collins was happy just to get five innings out of Santana on Opening Day. But there was no way he could mess with the former Cy Young winner on that Friday night. Since the no-no, Johan has an ERA of ...

Johan Santana's struggles have gotten worse as this season has progressed, and they won't be getting better any time soon.According to ESPN reporter Adam Rubin, Santana will miss his upcoming start against Colorado: Johan Santana won't start Thursday. So our Jenrry Mejia info looks even more solid with that acknowledgment.— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinESPN) August 21, 2012 This news comes on the heels of Monday night's report from New York Times reporter Hunter Atkins. Atkins reported that "he has experienced stiffness in his back that apparently worsened after he threw a bullpen session Monday."As Atkins also mentions, Santana was already being monitored. He hasn't cleared the 200-inning mark since 2008 and missed the entire 2011 season.Santana started the season by going 6-4 with a 2.76 ERA. Since then he's lost his last five starts. His ERA currently stands at 4.85, and he hasn't thrown more than five innings in a game since June ...

The New York Mets' run toward the MLB playoffs has gotten much tougher with the team's placement of All-Star starting pitcher Johan Santana on the 15-day disabled list with an ankle injury. ESPNNewYork.com's Adam Rubin is reporting via Twitter about Santana heading to the DL: Johan Santana to DL, officially with ankle injury.— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinESPN) July 21, 2012 There were concerns from around the majors that Santana was going too hard too soon after having shoulder surgery, but the pitcher's recent struggles don't appear to be related to that previous injury. Just as Rubin stated, the belief is that any other soreness in his shoulder or any missteps in his delivery can be attributed to the sore ankle.  What It Means The New York Mets sit 4.5 games out of one of the NL wild-card spots, and losing Santana may be too big of a blow for the talented team ...

From ESPN's Sports Center to the subway streets of Manhattan, no one believes in the New York Mets. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Following Johan Santana’s terrifically inspiring performance against the St. Louis Cardinals on June 1, general coverage of the New York Mets is still held with a grain of salt.As Santana became the first pitcher to ever throw a no-hitter whilst wearing the blue and orange jersey of the New York Mets, ESPN was given a perfect opportunity to perhaps bridge into a profile segment on the exciting and lovable group of ballplayers who compose one of the most compelling teams in 2012 baseball. Instead, ESPN focused their coverage on the controversial call of ruling Carlos Beltran’s would-be double a foul ball. Columnists and media pundits dwelled on the “missed call” and pointed to other instances of botched officiating in the history of the ...

Last weekend, I went to Citi Field and saw Johan Santana pitch a masterpiece. Santana dominated the San Diego Padres over nine innings. The Mets won 9-0 and Santana had his first shutout since 2010. The lefty struck out eight batters, walked none and threw 74 of his 96 total pitches for strikes. What made his performance that day even more impressive was the fact that Santana is still coming back from major shoulder surgery after missing all of the 2011 season.Tuning in to the Mets’ game last night, it appeared early on that Santana did not have his best stuff. He walked four batters over the first five innings and ran up his pitch count. He did, however, keep a potent Cardinals lineup from reaching base on a hit.From the sixth inning on, the warrior in Santana came out. His poise noticeably increased and his stuff looked better than ...

After 51 years, two months, and one day, the wait ended for the New York Mets. Johan Santana gave Mets fans what they so desperately craved: a no-hitter. Santana delivered a decent performance:a full nine innings, no runs, no hits, five walks and eight strikeouts. His cause was aided by a controversial call on a Carlos Beltran ball that touched the foul line, and a spectacular catch by Queens native Mike Baxter, who left with a bruised shoulder after crashing into the left field wall.But there was more to this no-hitter than just the numbers. This no-hitter was special in a number of ways.What ways, you may ask? Well, this slideshow will tell you. Begin Slideshow

It's time to place your Mets (bets).The New York Mets finally have their first no-hitter in franchise history. And it only took 51 years, 8,020 games and three ballparks to do it.Left-handed pitcher Johan Santana will have his name etched in the record books thanks to a milestone performance on Friday night, tossing the 275th no-no in major-league history. The two-time Cy Young winner had to make a career-high 134 pitches to finish the job."Amazing. I mean, coming into this season I was just hoping to come back, stay healthy and help the team."As always, each no-hitter or perfect game comes with two criteria: a questionable call, and "the catch."The questionable call was actually correct. In the sixth inning, former Met Carlos Beltran—back at Citi Field for the first time since the Mets traded him last July—ripped a grounder down the third-base line that actually hit the foul-line chalk, indicating it was a hit. ...