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Coleman: Johan Santana's Long And Winding Road To Recovery

By Ed Coleman
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It's been a circuitous route that Johan Santana has traveled this season, and the next stop will be Savannah, Georgia tonight. There Santana will make his next rehab start for the Mets' Single-A affiliate Sand Gnats as they take on the Augusta Greenjackets in the South Atlantic League playoffs.

Santana joined the Mets while they were in Miami and threw a bullpen on Tuesday under the watchful eyes of manager Terry Collins and pitching coach Dan Warthen. Collins was impressed.

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And what, if anything, was different about this bullpen than the one that Collins and his staff observed also in Miami back in late July.

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Santana loves to long-toss and really incorporated it as a key part of his rehab coming off shoulder surgery. But sometimes there can be too much of a good thing, as Santana explained what happened after his last rehab start.

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It has been almost a year - September 14, 2010 - since Santana had the torn anterior capsule in his pitching shoulder repaired. Because the minor league seasons are rapidly coming to a close, Santana could pitch on the major league level, or possibly the instructional league or even winter ball if necessary. He was asked how he feels about pitching in the majors.

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Pitching at the highest level at this stage of the recovery process could also present some distractions - too much adrenaline, the hoopla, the excitement - does Collins feel that Santana might be adversely affected by those factors?

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And if Johan didn't pitch at the major league level this season, would that be OK with the manager?

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Catcher Josh Thole, who's caught Santana and knows him well, saw him up close and personal on Tuesday in Florida.

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If everything goes well on Friday night, and all involved are confident it will, Santana has a lot of options at his disposal.

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His pitching coach, Warthen, believes in the old adage that the more you can find out about your situation, while still being sensible, the better off you will be.

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And his manager, Collins, believes that when healthy, Santana can and will be an ace once again.

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If anyone can re-invent himself as a No. 1, it's probably No. 57. How he feels tonight and tomorrow may go a long way towards determining that.

Will Santana return to form and anchor the Mets' rotation in 2012? Sound off in the comments below...

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