BREAKING NEWS: Johan Santana Takes Mound

I know that NotGraphs probably isn’t the right place for this, but BREAKING NEWS from Citi Field — Jonathan Niese is a last-minute scratch from his opening day start, and Johan Santana will be taking the mound after all. Buzz is that he sought a third opinion on his shoulder before undergoing surgery, and it turns out that there was a smudge on the previous x-ray that had gone unnoticed. His shoulder is actually in pristine condition, and the Mets rushed him to the clubhouse this morning. These are actual photos taken right now at Citi Field, as Johan takes his warmups.

Oh, wait, that last one — apparently Johan has just been traded back to the Twins. Like, just now. And he’s going to be taking Vance Worley’s place as their Opening Day starter, he just switched into the uniform in between warmup pitches and transported himself to Minnesota. Still waiting on word as far as why the Twins have decided to go with the gray road jerseys for the home opener. NotGraphs about to grab an exclusive with Chuck Knoblauch, who’s starting at second base this afternoon…. More to come.

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