Contrary to what the box score says, Johan Santana’s performance yesterday at Citi Field wasn’t as spotless as it might appear. Sure, he tossed his first complete-game shutout since his shoulder surgery en route to a 9-0 whipping of the Padres. But there was his ill-advised attempt to make a play on a dribbler down the third-base line to start of the ninth inning.
Instead of letting third baseman David Wright make an easier play, Santana went diving and tumbling toward the ball, allowing Blake Tekotte to reach base.
“I’ll let that one slide,” Wright said after the game. It was the last of just four hits Santana allowed in his first shutout since Aug. 12, 2010, and first complete game since Aug. 22, 2010.
Sure, it came against the lowly Padres, but it infused the Mets clubhouse with confidence that making this season something special is possible, especially if their stars continue to play like stars.
The Mets (26-21) have been cast as a team of young players too raw and green to know they’re not supposed to be winning. They are hungry and fearless and play the game with the passion of Little Leaguers who want to get their uniforms dirty. It’s a valid assessment. But this season only becomes special if the two guys driving the little engine, namely Wright and Santana, play like stars.
Wright has carried the Mets at the plate all season, batting .390 despite going 0-for-3 with a run scored yesterday. Santana, meanwhile, is working through his first season back since undergoing career-threatening surgery in September 2010. Entering yesterday’s start, he had posted solid outings despite little run support.
But he was exceptional against the Padres, showing great command and a fastball that made his change-up nearly unhittable.
“He’s so special, it’s incredible,” Mets manager Terry Collins said after Santana’s 96-pitch performance.
Collins has said similar things about Wright all season. Now with Santana pitching like the Santana of old, the Mets might not have a Big Three like the Knicks, but they’ve got two players, whose attitude and influence will benefit this franchise long after they’re gone.
“Johan and David have been tremendous so far this year,” said outfielder Scott Hairston, whose three-run homer in the first inning gave Santana the cushion he needed. “David has been so consistent and Johan as well. That spreads confidence throughout the team. Hopefully this will build and we’ll be able to string together a bunch of wins.”
The Mets are one of the feel-good stories in baseball. They entered the season amid low expectations, but stand five games over .500 and tied for second in the NL East after yesterday’s win. Though some might wonder when the good fortune will end, the Mets see themselves as getting better by the day. It’s easy to think that way with Wright and Santana showing the kind of leadership they’ve displayed on and off the field.
Santana seemed as happy yesterday with the eighth-inning grand slam catcher Mike Nickeas hit as his own pitching performance.
“He was pumped,” Nickeas said with a grin.
The whole team applauded 32-year-old Vinny Rottino getting his first major league home run, and Ike Davis’s pinch-hit run-scoring double in the eighth stirred hopes he is breaking out of his slump.
“We’re picking each other up,” Nickeas said. “David has carried us a long way. But if he has an off day, we’ve got other guys that need to step up and will because we want this as a team.”
Wright could have been talking about his own play when he said he hoped Santana’s performance would set a standard other players on the team would try to duplicate.
“It’s such a momentum game,” Wright said. “This pushes guys to keep the bar elevated. You want them competing with each other and raising the bar for each start.”
That’s what star players are supposed to do.
george.willis@nypost.com