Sadly, we’re still talking about Santana

The Mets and the media are still turning Johan Santana‘s spring into a circus.

Today it was Terry Collins‘ turn to get in on the act, and he sounds every bit like the lame-duck manager he is:

Said Collins: “I asked, ‘What did you get on the mound for?’ And he said, ‘Because I felt good.’ And I said, ‘It was unnecessary.’”

…

Said Collins: “I said, ‘The last thing I need is to have you wake up tomorrow stiff and then we take a huge step backward because you wanted to show everybody you’re OK….

[via ESPN New York]

So, here we have Santana – a $25 million+ investment who was until recently expected to be the Opening Day starter – throwing without his manager’s approval or knowledge until after the fact.

The Mets are really looking like winners here, aren’t they? And it all started because Sandy Alderson – the one who was supposedly hired to make the Mets look more competent and respectable – decided to open his mouth in front of a bunch of reporters.

Fun if you’re a tabloid reporter or sports radio talk show host… otherwise, not so much.

And while we’re on the subject, here’s an even less-fun story via TMZ, of all places: Dwight Gooden has a temporary restraining order filed against him because he allegedly threatened his estranged wife and her family.

If you want some good news regarding the Mets… well, Kirk Nieuwenhuis is only expected to miss a week or so after injuring his knee while stealing a base on Sunday. The way things have been going, I was afraid it would turn into a season-ending injury and it didn’t, so at least there’s that.

And I’ve got a couple of new additions to my Mets autograph collection. Non-roster outfielder Andrew Brown signed a card I mailed to him via Mets spring training camp, but the Mike Piazza card was a purchase.