Tag: Josh Thole

Mets Trade R.A. Dickey to Blue Jays

Travis d'Arnaud At Bat
Travis d’Arnaud At Bat (Photo credit: tjperr)

R.A. Dickey agreed to a 2-year/$25 million contract extension with the Toronto Blue Jays today that completed the trade with the Mets for the 2012 NL Cy Young Award winner. The Jays will also get catchers Josh Thole and Mike Nickeas. In return, the Mets get top catching prospect Travis d’Arnaud, minor league pitcher Noah Snydergaard, catcher John Buck, and minor league outfielder Wuilmer Becerra.

The trade seems like a good deal for the Mets with d’Arnaud being listed as a top 20 prospect in all of baseball. It further cements the Mets rebuilding effort and willingness to concede the 2013 season to be a fifth straight losing season. The only thing holding the Mets back from a complete overhaul is Johan Santana and his massive contract. The Mets tried to talk Santana trades at the winter meetings but no teams had any interest.

Time will tell if this trade works out for the Mets. We won’t know for sure for a few seasons. If d’Arnaud turns out to be suspect instead of a prospect, Sandy Alderson will have made one of the worst moves in Mets history. But if d’Arnaud turns into the next Buster Posey the Mets will have done rather well for a 38 year old knuckleballer.

2012 Mets Pitchers and Catchers Reporting Date

Johan Santana
Johan Santana (Photo credit: Keith Allison)

The Mets pitchers and catchers have to report to Port St. Lucie by tomorrow and have their physicals on Tuesday. There isn’t a lot of intrigue this year given the team’s dire financial situation. But the one pitcher that everyone will be keeping an eye on is Johan Santana. He missed all of last season recovering from surgery on his left shoulder and there are still major questions about when he can come back. And there are even bigger questions about how effective he’ll be when he does come back. The good news is that Santana only has two years left on his deal with the Mets plus a team option for 2014. I never thought that I’d be counting down the days until Santana’s contract ended.

There are some new faces in the bullpen this year. Jon Rauch, Ramon Ramirez, and Frank Francisco will be the newly acquired back of the bullpen. Tim Byrdak will be back as the lefty specialist. D.J. Carrasco might find himself back in the minors again if he can’t keep it together.  Carrasco might be pitching along side Pedro Beato at Buffalo this season. Beato started hot last season but ended dreadfully. He’s available to send back to the minors now that the Mets got past his Rule 5 season. Continue reading “2012 Mets Pitchers and Catchers Reporting Date”

Nationals 3 – Mets 0 July 30, 2011

LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 6: Josh Thole #30 of t...
Image by Getty Images via @daylife

The Mets five game winning streak came to an end in Washington tonight at the hands of Nats starter Yunesky Maya. Jason Marquis was supposed to start but got traded to the D-Backs right before the game. Maya held the Mets scoreless into the sixth inning and the Nats bullpen continued the shutout.

Obviously, there isn’t much offense from the Mets to talk about. But Josh Thole was 2 for 2 and got hit twice so he was on base four times. And the Mets did manage to load the bases with 2 outs in the ninth inning, but Willie Harris struck out looking to end the game.

The Mets and Nats will play the rubber game tomorrow at 1:35.

Box score

Mets 6 – Cardinals 5 July 20, 2011

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL - FEBRUARY 24: RY 24: RY ...
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The Mets have been a team that has never quit when they are down.   Tonight was no different.

R.A. Dickey struggled against the Cardinals lineup.  Dickey went 6 and a 1/3 innings, and gave up 4 runs on 8 hits.   Despite his struggles, the Mets as a team continue to show that they never back down and never quit .  That is one of the most important traits of this team that makes this team enjoyable to watch.

The Mets would get back into the game as Carlos Beltran hit a two-run home run in the 5th inning.   Josh Thole came through with two RBI singles that contributed to the Mets comeback.  But, the guy who gave the Mets the game winner was Angel Pagan.  Pagan hit a walk-off solo HR right below the SNY crew, and gave the Mets the win against the Cards.

Box Score

video: Mets Weekly Report – 2011 Mid-Season Awards

In this week’s edition of the Mets Weekly Report, Kerel Cooper of On The Black and I talk about where the Mets are at the mid-point of 2011. We also get into a discussion of the biggest surprises, both good and bad, for the Mets so far this season. We don’t agree on everything. So check out the video below and let me know your thoughts in the comments.

Topics include who’s been the best pitcher and position player so far?

One of the points that Kerel and I differ on is the mid-season grade for Terry Collins. What grade would you give Collins for the job he’s done so far?

Mets 14 – Tigers 3 June 28, 2011

DENVER, CO - MAY 12: Jason Bay #44 of the New...
Image by Getty Images via @daylife

The Mets jumped on Rick Porcello right from the start scoring 2 runs in the first and they were off an running from there. It was a complete blowout and, surprisingly, the second time they scored 14 runs in a game on this road trip. R.A. Dickey was solid for 7 innings only allowing 3 runs and that was all the Mets needed.

The story of the game was offense and more offense. The Mets had 18 hits and 5 walks including two grand slams from Carlos Beltran and Jason Bay. Light-hitting Josh Thole even hit a home. Of course, Jose Reyes went crazy going 4 for 4 with 3 runs. It was just an incredible offensive display.

The Mets are 3-1 on this road trip and a game over .500. They’re undermanned but not giving up on this season that’s for sure.

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Mets 7 – Pirates 3 May 30, 2011

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL - FEBRUARY 24: RY 24: Dil...
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The Mets got another good effort from Dillon Gee going 7 innings and giving up only 3 runs. He had 8 strikeouts and no walks lifting his record to 5-0 this season. He’s been terrific since last September every time he’s been given an opportunity. At this point, I don’t know how he could lose his spot in the rotation.

The Mets offense crushed the Pirates pitchers for 15 hits and 2 walks. But they left 10 runners on base. The damage could have been much worse than the 7 runs they scored. Josh Thole had the big hit, a 2-run double in the bottom of the seventh that gave the Mets the lead for good in the game. Daniel Murphy, Angel Pagan, and Ruben Tejada had 3 hits apiece tonight.

The Mets take the first game of the four game series.

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