Twins' Johan Santana: thriving in his role as a starter: since joining Minnesota's rotation at mid-season in 2003, left-hander has developed into club's ace

Baseball Digest, Nov, 2004 by Mel Antonen

The DISPLAY IN PITCHER JOHAN Santana's game room tells the story of his career firsts: He's got his uniform, batting glove and baseballs from his big league first game and first win. He also has his first autographed baseball, from the 1994 Houston Astros.

The ball started his career path. It was given to him in 1995, when Santana was 15, by Astros scout Andres Reiner. The scout drove 10 hours in the mountainous countryside of Venezuela to visit Santana and ask if he wanted to attend the Astros' baseball academy in Valencia.

"Some of the names are hard to read, but to me, that ball is priceless because it makes me feel so good about baseball," Santana says. "Someone knocked on my door and said, 'You don't know me, but I know you.' And he gave me the ball. I remember thinking, 'I have a chance to be a baseball player."

Santana, 25, is a left-handed pitcher who baffles batters with a 95-mph fastball and a 74-mph changeup. Scouts say Santana's changeup is equal to those of Barry Zito and Mark Mulder of Oakland and Andy Pettitte of Houston, considered to have the three best changeups in the game.

Santana--the only player named Johan to play in a major league game since 1900, according to Elias Sports Bureau--left the Twins' bullpen and joined the rotation a year ago. Through the end of August, he was the key starter in the Twins' bid to win a third consecutive American League Central title.

"Mike Sweeney (of the Kansas City Royals) screamed when he struck out on Santana's changeup," Twins third baseman Corey Koskie says. "That's because Sweeney was swinging 20 seconds before the ball got to the plate. A batter can't sit on the changeup because you always have that 95-mph fastball in the back of your head."

After off-season elbow surgery to remove bone chips, Santana started the 2004 season slowly, but through August 29, he was one of baseball's hottest starting pitchers, the one nobody knew about.

Santana pitched into the seventh inning in 21 of his first 28 starts this year. He has allowed three or fewer earned runs in 18 of those games.

His 213 strikeouts led the American League ahead of Pedro Martinez, who had 188 for the Boston Red Sox. Santana has at least 10 strikeouts in 10 of his 28 starts this year including a season high of 13 on July 6 against the Kansas City Royals.

"I don't try for strikeouts, but batters just swing and miss," Santana says. "I'd exchange strikeouts for more innings. As a starter, my job is to go deep into the game. When you get strikeouts, you throw a lot of pitches and sometimes you come out early."

Just like Dad

Santana, who doesn't know why his parents named him Johan, grew up in the town of Tovar Merida and wasn't sure what major league baseball was. He figured to be an electrical engineer.

He grew up playing soccer and sandlot baseball after spending mornings baking bread in his grandfather's bakery. He wanted to be like his father, Jesus, who worked for an electric company and played shortstop for an amateur team. At age 11, Johan went for his first tryout, wearing shorts and a sleeveless shirt. He threw right-handed so he could be like his father.

"They kicked me out because I didn't look like a baseball player, So I went home and looked through all my dad's uniforms and caps. I found the smallest I could find and returned. Everything was big."

Then the coaches told him to try throwing left-handed. "They asked me, 'What hand do you write with?' And I said, 'Left.' So they told me to throw left."

Just before the players' strike of 1994, the Astros saw Santana playing as a first baseman and center fielder in a Venezuelan national tournament for 15- and 16-year olds.

Reiner, the founder of the Astros' baseball academy in Valencia and now a special assistant in the front office, called to inquire about driving a 350-mile trip to Tovar Merida to visit Santana's family and invite Johan to the academy. The answer. No way.

"They said, 'Andres, forget it, We aren't spending,'" Reiner says. "Two weeks later, I called again. It was the same thing.

"Two weeks later, I called again to talk to (general manager) Bob Watson. I told him I needed $300 or $400 to make the trip, and he took the money from his own pocket."

Reiner showed Santana a brochure with a picture of the Astros' spring training site in Kissimmee, Florida. Santana was hooked: "I had never seen four or five diamonds together. It made an impression: It was beautiful."

In January 1995, Santana went for a three-month stay at the academy, which was designed to teach prospects baseball, English, social skills, nutrition and basic finance.

At the academy, Santana practiced from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Then he went to the gym for a workout. English classes started at 5 p.m. and then he took other classes at night.

"He was very excited to come to the academy because it was one way to get out of the economic problems for him and his family," Reiner says. "He could see a future. And he was a bright student. Our professor said he was the best student at learning English."