Santana led Mets on a bad knee; surgery successful

Newsday—October 2, 2008

Johan Santana was the best pitcher in the National League during the month of September and pushed the Mets to the brink of the playoffs with his three-hit shutout of the Marlins on the second-to-last day of the regular season.

Incredibly, Santana did it all on one leg.

The Mets revealed that the two-time Cy Young winner had successful arthroscopic surgery yesterday to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee and Santana is expected to make a full recovery before spring training. The meniscus is a piece of cartilage that helps stabilize and cushion the knee joint. The operation was performed by team physicians David Altchek and Struan Coleman at Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan.

"Johan's exit physical -- standard for all players -- took place yesterday," general manager Omar Minaya said in a statement. "An MRI revealed a torn meniscus in his left knee which necessitated surgery. Johan had mentioned some mild discomfort after his start in Washington [Sept. 18], which did not preclude him from facing the Cubs or Marlins last week. Most important is that the operation was successful and that he'll be ready to go before spring training."