Mets ace Johan Santana has looked good as of late and he appears to be on schedule in his rehabilitation from elbow surgery. Santana had bone chips removed from his throwing elbow in August. "We did a pretty good job in the offseason working out with the rehab," Santana said. "I'm feeling good. Everything is on schedule." Santana finished 13-9 with a 3.13 ERA last season. "Right now we just have to focus on the pitches -- to make sure we get over 90 pitches by Opening Day," he said. "That's exactly what we did last year, and I felt pretty good last year. We'll see exactly where we end up with the program once spring training starts."

Mets starting pitcher Johan Santana is set to throw off a mound to test his left elbow. Santana, who will throw on Tuesday, had surgery on his throwing elbow late last season. "I'm feeling good. Time will tell, but I am feeling good," Santana said Monday. "We did a pretty good job with the offseason, working out and doing all the rehab, and I'm feeling good. Everything is on schedule." Santana went 13-9 with a 3.13 ERA in 25 starts in 2009.

Tigers third baseman Brandon Inge has been cleared to resume baseball activities following November surgery on chronic patellar tendinitis in both knees. He was in locking ankle-to-thigh braces for two weeks after the surgery. "Two weeks of hell, that's for sure," Inge said. "Now that I don't look like Forrest Gump, I obviously feel 10 times better." Inge doesn't expect to be 100 percent by the time spring training begins, but the club hopes he can play full games during the final two weeks of camp. "The pain I was feeling all last year is gone," he said. "The only pain I feel wouldn't even really classify as pain. I guess the way I would describe it, if you were to hold a water balloon in your hands and you squeeze it, that pressure is what I feel in the entire knee. "But that's just from the trauma of someone going into your knee."

Giants second baseman Freddy Sanchez has undergone left shoulder surgery and might not be ready by Opening Day. San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy confirmed to The Associated Press on Thursday night that Sanchez had a recent arthroscopic procedure. "He's going to be a little delayed," Bochy said in a phone interview. "It'll be close if he can go opening day or not." Sanchez had left knee surgery late in the 2009 season.

Brad Lidge had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Wednesday, and his status for Opening Day is up in the air, the club announced in a news release Thursday. The team's physician, Dr. Michael Ciccotti, performed the surgery at the Rothman Institute at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. It consisted of "the removal of loose bodies and meniscal debridement," the release stated. "The surgery went well, and Brad is expected to begin his throwing program in 10 days," Phillies head athletic trainer Scott Sheridan said in a statement. "We're not sure if he'll be ready by Opening Day, but we don't expect that he'll be too far behind. This surgery was not directly related to any previous surgeries."

Red Sox starter Daisuke Matsuzaka says that his injury problems last season actually began prior to the 2009 World Baseball Classic. According to a Boston Globe report, Dice-K recently told a Japanese magazine that he injured his right leg while preparing to help Japan defend its title at the Classic. "Early on in January 2009, I hurt my right inner thigh," Matsuzaka said. "I consider movement around my hip joint a crucial part of my pitching motion. It happened during my exercise to strengthen my hip joint that I [have] incorporated into training since 2008. "I may have pushed myself just a little too hard. It wasn't the pain that killed me, but it was the regrets and guilt that filled my mind. It was the time to start building up for the season, but I hurt myself because of my own doing. "I had to make a decision whether this injury was serious enough to withdraw from the World Baseball Classic. But my body was functioning well, and by taking anti-inflammatory medicine I [could] tolerate the pain. So I continued training, but actually it was even hard just to jog." Despite the discomfort, Matsuzaka was able to conceal the injury from the Team Japan trainers and coaches. "I didn't want to be the center of concern for people," Matsuzaka said. "I didn't tell the trainers. Fortunately, I was in charge of my own training, so if it started to hurt, I could adjust to not hurt myself. "But, pitching while hiding the injury was very difficult. Even when I didn't feel the pain, my body was holding back because it sensed the danger. So, my pitching motion was more of standing straight up and throwing with my upper body, relying on my shoulder strength more than usual."