Santana was in Mets camp over the weekend as a guest instructor at the invitation of manager Carlos Mendoza, who knows the former Mets and Twins pitcher from Venezuelan baseball circles. Mendoza recently learned via the team’s social-media accounts that Santana was Manaea’s favorite back in the day, and he made the introduction happen.

The former Mets ace has been receiving a taste of that satisfaction this weekend at Clover Park, where he is serving as a guest instructor for the team.

A few days before Johan Santana arrived at Mets camp, manager Carlos Mendoza learned that one of the team’s top starting pitchers, Sean Manaea, had grown up idolizing him. So Mendoza plotted with Santana,