Cardinals fall to 0-2 in spring games

~ St. Louis prospect Matt Adams belted a grand slam in an 8-6 loss to the Mets

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- To Johan Santana and the New York Mets, this was a most pleasant spring sight.

The lefty ace returned to the mound for his first game against major league hitters in 18 months and pitched two scoreless innings Tuesday as a Mets split squad beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-6.

Santana walked his first batter on five pitches. But a single marked the only other runner against Santana, who threw 17 of 29 pitches for strikes.

The two-time Cy Young winner last pitched to big league hitters Sept. 2, 2010, in a game in Atlanta. Two weeks later he underwent surgery to repair a torn anterior capsule in his left shoulder.

"Finally I had an opportunity to go out there and finally get the first one out of the way," Santana said. "I was excited about today. Even as I was preparing myself prior to the game, I was anxious to go out there and do it."

"But, at the same time, it was all about how I feel. I know it is a game situation and you have to do your job out there, but I was just focused on making sure I do the mechanics the right way and feeling good and not feeling anything in my arm, and that's how I felt today. I felt good."

Mark Hamilton recorded the only hit against Santana, singling on a 1-2 changeup in the second inning. Hamilton later hit an RBI double.

Both team had nine hits. The Cardinals' offense included a grand slam by power-hitting prospect Matt Adams in the seventh inning that gave St. Louis a 6-4 lead.

New York scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning off losing pitcher Adam Reifer.

Santana threw fastballs on all 13 of his pitches in the first inning, mostly around 87-88 mph on the radar gun and topping out at 90 mph. But he broke out his signature changeup and a few sliders in the second.

"I didn't know what his velocity would be like having not pitched in a long time," the Cardinals' Matt Holliday said. "[Throwing] 89-90 at the beginning of spring training I would say is pretty good. He looked pretty good. ... He knows how to pitch, so if he is healthy he is going to be effective."

Holliday got a good swing on a 3-2 four-seam fastball in the first inning, but the ball caught in the wind and dropped into the glove of center fielder Andres Torres.

Santana said it was an adjustment just being on the mound in a game situation again. He looked like his old self when he got Yadier Molina to swing and miss a changeup.

Mets manager Terry Collins was encouraged to see his ace back on the mound in a game.

"This has been a great camp so far, but that might be the most positive day we had," Collins said.

Cardinals starter Jake Westbrook pitched two scoreless innings. He allowed one hit, walked two and struck out two.

"For the first one, I'm really looking for how I feel, and I feel strong," Westbrook said. "It felt really good. Obviously, the walks aren't something that I want to continue to be a pattern."

"It's a good starting point. I'll take what I got out of the day and learn from it and try to get back to be more consistent in the zone," he said.