Baltimore Orioles select Johan Santana’s contract
By Hayden Kane
We might see veteran left-handed pitcher Johan Santana on the mound for a big league team yet.
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Santana has been working his way into shape in the Baltimore Orioles’ minor league system. On Monday they selected his contract and placed him on the big league disabled list. That means he should be on his way to joining the Orioles after a long journey during which it wasn’t clear that he would pitch in the big leagues again.
According to Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun:
#Orioles have selected the contract of LH Johan Santana from 3A Norfolk & placed him on the 15-day DL (recovery from shoulder surgery).
— Eduardo A. Encina (@EddieInTheYard) June 2, 2014
Johan Santana will pitch one more game in ext. spring. That will likely be Tues or Wed bec #Orioles want to keep on reg schedule.
— Eduardo A. Encina (@EddieInTheYard) June 3, 2014
Encina reports that Santana will then likely go on a normal rehab assignment through the minor league system. From that point, the organization expects him to be able to contribute on the big league level. That is the expectation of general manager Dan Duquette:
Duquette on Johan: "A couple more outings & he should be able to help the major league team from the information we’re getting." #Orioles
— Eduardo A. Encina (@EddieInTheYard) June 3, 2014
It was exactly two years ago, June 9, 2012, that Santana threw the first no-hitter in New York Mets history. Unfortunately it took him 134 pitches and he has never been the same since. He eventually suffered a season-ending injury that August and then missed the entire 2013 season with shoulder troubles.
There were concerns about his velocity throughout the off-season, but if he is able to contribute at the big league level it will be a nice value for the Orioles and an even better story for Santana.