That is the $64,000 question for Terry Collins and the Met brass today as left knee tendinitis will force Beltran to the sidelines for 5 days. Now before you all go out and jump off the Whitestone Bridge, lets all take a deep breath.
Ok now we can talk about Beltran. What he is experiencing is not uncommon for athletes who have spent the winter rehabbing an injured knee and then favored the other knee while trying to get into game shape. Anti-inflammatory medicine will alleviate the pain and the soreness in a few days and if it does not, then and only then should we be in Defcon 5.
I can tell you this--Beltran will never have the strength in his right knee he once had and that is why he went to right field. He acknowledges that and will live with it so Met fans should as well. That being said, he is still a dynamic bat, when in the lineup, and is a force to be reckoned with and makes hitters around him better.
That is why you take precautions in March because you want him around in August, September and dare say--October. And that is why you do not panic on March 8. So, back to the original question: Will he be ready on Opening Day? Probably but if he is not--is that a huge deal? The baseball season is a marathon not a sprint even though the Beltran detractors will point to playing on Opening Day as some kind of barometer of his toughness.
Let me tell you--Beltran is plenty tough and has played hurt more than you know. In fact, I wish more people in the Met clubhouse over the years cared as much as he does. But enough from me--listen in to my conversation with Terry Collins about Beltran:
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