We’re all knocking wood, crossing fingers, jumping the foul line and throwing salt over our left shoulders every time this happens, right? Good. Because Johan Santana pitched again, again topped out at 90 mph on the gun, and again said he felt good afterward.

Also, like half of the Mets are out with oblique injuries. Terry Collins said he suspects it has to do with the focus on core strength in training, but was careful not to throw the Mets’ strength and conditioning guys under the bus. Collins suggested a variety of possible reasons including dehydration and excess activity, and said that due to the spate of injuries the team has cut down on batting-practice reps and emphasized the importance of its morning stretches.

Tim Byrdak has a sore knee and is flying to New York for a diagnosis. If Byrdak’s out for any length of time, don’t be surprised to see Minor Leaguer Josh Edgin get more opportunities with the big-league Mets — at least in Spring Training games. Edgin, No. 19 on Toby Hyde’s Top 41 this offseason, is a hard-throwing lefty that threw 66 strong innings in A-ball last year.

Edgin is the only pitcher from the Mets’ Minor League camp that they’ve used in a Grapefruit League game, and they’ve already done it twice. Yesterday, for a forthcoming SNY.tv video piece, Wally Backman said thought Edgin was ready to start the year with him in Triple-A. Edgin is 25 and has exclusively worked in relief in the Minors, so fast-tracking him would hardly be a Jenrry Mejia situation.