PORT ST. LUCIE — Johan Santana wants to set the record straight: He is completely on schedule rehabbing from left shoulder surgery — even if he barely pitches for the Mets this year.
After playing catch in the outfield and taking batting practice yesterday at the Mets minor league complex, the ace lefty told The Post any projections he would return this year at the All-Star break, or even in August, were best-case scenarios.
“I was told by Dr. [David] Altchek this was going to take up to a year, so it’s going to take me to Sept. 14,” said Santana, who underwent surgery on that date last year to repair a torn anterior capsule in his left shoulder. “If I come back sooner, that would be great. If not, we’ll be fine. [Altchek] said there might be a possibility to come back within 10 months, but that was just a possibility. That was not a fact.”
The Mets denied a report last night that Santana’s season debut could come on Aug. 21 at Citi Field. A club spokesman called the situation “fluid” and said no schedule has been set.
Whether or not Santana pitches for the Mets this season will largely be determined in the next few weeks. Santana has been throwing batting practice for the last two weeks — his next session will come today — and hopes August will bring a minor league rehab assignment.
But he will let his shoulder, not the calendar, determine his next step.
Santana, who has two years and $55 million remaining on his contract after this season, doesn’t agree with the notion he needs to pitch major league games this season for the sake of putting the surgery behind him.
“The key in everything is to make sure I’m healthy and I feel good, more than just prove anything or get questions out of the way,” Santana said. “The key is to make sure we are healthy and moving toward the future. When is the future? We don’t know. It could be next month or it could be next year.”
Santana realizes he could be returning to a vastly different team. Francisco Rodriguez is already gone, dealt to the Brewers last week, and Carlos Beltran will likely be wearing a different uniform within the next 10 days. If Santana doesn’t return until next season, there is also the possibility he has played his last game with potential free agent Jose Reyes. Both Santana and Reyes have the same agent, Peter Greenberg.
“I hope they find a way to keep [Reyes] because he’s a great player,” Santana said. “It’s not easy to find and replace a player like him out on the field. I would say he’s unique. Right now we have him, so hopefully they find a way to keep him.”
Santana hasn’t seen his teammates since spring training, but expects to have a reunion with them this weekend in Miami. Santana says he hasn’t given up on the Mets — in the present or future.
“When I came here, I was committed to winning, and the team was the same way,” he said. “With injuries and stuff it’s kind of tough, but that doesn’t mean we’re done. Looking toward the future, we still have a pretty good chance to put a good team out there and compete.”