Johan Santana, With A Possible Assist From Late Great Gary Carter, Was Meant To Throw Mets First No-Hitter

Johan Santana was the right man for history. (AP photo)

  By Jenni Mennella  

Three days later, I’m still in shock. I had gone to see The Avengers after work, and we stopped into a bar to grab a drink afterwards. The cheering outside was louder than usual, so I looked inside and saw my Mets on the big screen. It took me a few minutes to realize what was happening and it finally clicked.

Johan Santana was three outs away from a no-hitter.

I blinked a few times to be sure and then did what any true fan did: I stopped moving and didn’t utter another sound. Just seeing the box score 0-0-0 took my breath away. Then my brain started racing and thinking of everything that’s happened with the Mets this season ... Jose Reyes’ defection to Miami, the fans’ fear of losing David Wright at the end of this season, the tragic loss of Gary Carter, the unexpected success our hapless band of Bison babies have put together, and Santana’s long-awaited comeback from numerous surgeries.

I realized if ever there was a moment that needed the unspeakable to happen this was it, on our home turf, and with No. 57 on the mound.

And then it did. Finally the 50-year wait was over. 50 years of almosts and not quites are put to rest by the one man whose commitment to winning has never faded, regardless of how much pain he was in.

No one can forget Santana’s gutsy performance on September 27, 2008, a complete game shutout after throwing 125 pitches just three days earlier. Even more gutsy was realizing he did it on a torn meniscus in his left knee, leading to surgery on October 1, 2008. 44 months to the day later, he pitched a no-hitter.

Let’s not forget bone chips cut Santana’s 2009 season short, and 2010 proved to be worse with a torn anterior capsule shutting him down for more than a year, aside from a brief minor league rehab stint in 2011. Cal Ripken, Jr. just may have to share the Iron Man title.

This season had a lot riding on it, with Santana’s health being the biggest question mark. Would he ever return to pitch in the majors? If he did, would his stuff be any good or just a mere shadow of his past dominance? Most of all, would he be able to handle the limitations imposed on his work load to ensure his rehabbed shoulder didn’t buckle under the pressure? All of those questions and more lingered around a team not expected to finish better than fourth this year, and that’s being generous.

Very little separates the thrill of victory from the agony of defeat. There are walkoff home runs by the other team, long fly balls to the wrong side of the foul pole, and 3-2 pitches that miss the corner. It’s milliseconds or millimeters, if that, as we saw with Adrian Johnson’s questionable call in the sixth inning. I’ve seen the replays and, for a change, I’m both shocked and thrilled it went in our favor. Carlos Beltran was a Met for a long time, so if he had to get a hit taken away in this manner, I can’t help but think he’d be OK with it. In a cruel twisted way, he’s still tied to Mets history.

Speaking of former Mets, Carter’s passing has unified the team. Santana’s been rocking the “8” T-shirt all season. No one can deny The Kid’s energy was infectious to all those around him, so I wonder if the numerous 8s on Friday are a message from the other side. Was Thole channeling Carter to call the game?

By the numbers ... Johan recorded 8 Ks. Add up the individual digits of his pitch count 134 (1+3+4) and you’ll get 8. It was the 251st no-hitter in baseball, which also adds up to 8. The Mets had 8 hits and scored 8 runs in the 8th game of the homestand. Carter died at 57 - Johan's jersey number. A fitting tribute to a class act, indeed.

We also know it’s the 50th anniversary, so what about the 7? OK, I’ll say it - Mets in 7 - and you can bet that Santana will be on the mound for the win!