Johan Santana has yet to do more than simply have a catch this spring, but the New York Mets were still hoping to have their ace back on the mound by July. Now it appears that a new setback will cost Santana all of 2011.
According to a report in The Record, the Mets believe they'll be "lucky" if they get Santana back at any point this season.
From the moment he went under the knife, there was a simple three step plan drawn up by the team for Santana's recovery. The first was just that, to recover from the surgery, the second was for him to return to throwing the ball, while the final step is to get back to actually pitching.
Santana has not been progressing in the second step of light throwing, which is the reason the team is ready to halt his rehab all together. Any delay for Santana will push his hoped July return off the table and would make it impossible to know just when he might be able to return.
While only a small portion of the Mets fan base was counting on getting anything of any importance from Santana this season, the idea of his return was a good source of hope from a team that hasn't offered much lately.