The Johan Situation
There is almost no communication between the Mets and Johan Santana these days, according to a tweet from John Harper of the Daily News.
“Let’s put it this way,” one team official told Andy Martino of the Daily News. “This wouldn’t be the time to approach him about helping with any team functions.”
Santana arrived in Port St. Lucie with a weak shoulder, Martino explains. Last week, Sandy Alderson said Santana did not arrive in “pitching shape.” Santana took this as an insult, according to multiple reports, and later threw a bullpen session, which some interpreted to be Santana trying to prove a point.
Santana has has had less communication with team reporters than usual during the last week or so.
Matthew Cerrone, Lead Writer
My sense of this, after hearing from people in St. Lucie, is that Santana was first irritated with Alderson, but he is now more frustrated with how media interpreted and reported the situation. The Mets will tell you this is being reported as a far bigger deal than it is, and people close to Santana seem to say the same. Yet, I think Martino is accurate when he writes of a disconnect between Santana and the Front Office (not necessarily the coaching staff). It’s very weird and not surprising given the egos, contract size, value, needs, reputations, etc… I mean, do any of these monster contracts ever end well? It’s so rare.
Yesterday, someone asked me, ‘What do you think of the situation with Johan?’ I answered, ‘I don’t think of Johan, unless I see him on a mound.’ This is how I felt about Pedro Martinez (toward the end of his time here) as well. You remember, every time Pedro picked up a ball it wasn’t about the Mets, or the standings, or the performance, so much as it was about Pedro’s health, how he felt, would he make his next start, etc. It was all just reporting on his status, and the same is happening with Santana.
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