Of course, one cannot speak about the most impressive seasons on the mound by a Mets hurler without mentioning Robert Allen (R.A.) Dickey in 2012.

Dickey’s dominance that year was impressive for a host of reasons. For one, he led the National League in innings pitched with 233.2 in his age-37 season, while posting the fourth-lowest ERA among qualified starters at 2.73. He recorded back-to-back one-hitters on June 13 and June 18, a feat that had not been accomplished since Dave Stieb in 1988. And, of course, Dickey accomplished all of this while throwing a knuckleball over 85 percent of the time.

The veteran righty went 20-6 over 34 games (33 starts), recording 230 strikeouts (most in the N.L.) with a 1.053 WHIP. Along with his pair of one-hitters, Dickey tossed a franchise-record 32 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings, breaking the previous record held by Jerry Koosman.

Dickey’s durability was on full display in 2012. He tossed at least six innings in 31 of his 33 starts and went at least seven innings in 22 games. Dickey’s 27 quality starts led all starters, and his three shutouts were the most by a Mets pitcher since David Cone’s five in 1992. To further illustrate the dominance Dickey displayed, he’s one of two pitchers in Major League Baseball history (along with Randy Johnson in 2001, 2002 and 2004) who posted a season with 225 or more innings pitched, 225 or more strikeouts and a sub-2.75 ERA in his age-37 or older season.

With 27 of 32 first-place votes, Dickey took home the N.L. Cy Young Award, becoming the first knuckleball pitcher to win it. The hardware was a testament to Dickey’s resiliency, as he made a career-altering transition to a full-time knuckleball pitcher at the behest of the Texas Rangers—which included pitching coach Orel Hershiser and manager Buck Showalter—in 2005.

Dickey spent years tinkering with various mechanics both in the majors and minors, having to unlearn being a conventional pitcher. Working with the small fraternity of other knuckleball pitchers—past and present—Dickey endured to keep his professional baseball career alive. Following his tenure with the Rangers, Dickey bounced around organizations before signing a minor league pact with the Mets in December 2009.

No one could have imagined that a veteran pitching depth signing would become one of the best free-agent deals in the organization’s history.

Overall, Dickey appeared in 94 big league games with the Mets from 2010 to 2012, posting a 2.95 ERA and 10.2 fWAR. Among 33 pitchers who tossed at least 600 innings with the team, Dickey owns the third-lowest ERA, behind deGrom (2.52) and Seaver (2.57).

Dickey, 50, retired following the 2017 season with the Atlanta Braves. Just as his signature pitch moved unpredictably, so too did Dickey’s professional career. Yet, through it all, Dickey adapted and experienced a career resurgence when many others would have been waning.

I had the privilege of speaking with Dickey in February, where we discussed his transition to a knuckleballer, the knuckleball fraternity and his tenure in New York.

MMO: Who were some of your favorite players growing up?

Dickey: It kind of depends on what stage of life I was at. Early on, Nolan Ryan was always somebody I admired. I grew up an Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs fan because I got TBS and WGN in the South. So I would constantly be watching their games.

Greg Maddux was a huge influence on me. Rick Sutcliffe was another favorite player. John Smoltz and that era of Braves pitchers were pretty special. That was fun to watch.

MMO: Is it true that your grandfather was the person who initially showed you a knuckleball grip?

Dickey: Yeah! When I started pitching, my grandfather whipped out an old scrapbook article where he struck out like 21 out of 22 batters in one game throwing a knuckleball. He said, “This is how I held it,” and he tried to teach it to me. At the time, I just wanted to throw as hard as I could.

I filed it away in the back of my mind and played with it as I got older. Obviously, it’s something I ended up going with full-time. But at the time, I was just having fun and being goofy with it. My grandfather introduced me to the grip and the idea of a ball not spinning and being able to pitch with it.

MMO: Was that the grip you used early on with the Rangers, which they called “The Thing?”

Dickey: You know, Joe Morgan on “Sunday Night Baseball” kind of gave it that moniker; I never called it that. It was just a really hard knuckleball for me. Some people thought it was a split-hybrid, others thought it was a forkball. It was really a knuckleball that I threw as hard as I could.

I would throw one or two a game just so people would think that I had a different pitch. As I started becoming worse as a conventional pitcher, I needed a weapon I could use consistently to get big-league hitters out. My knuckleball was what ended up being the ticket.

MMO: Can you talk about the moment when the Rangers—and specifically Orel Hershiser and Buck Showalter—talked to you about transitioning to a full-time knuckleball pitcher?

Dickey: I was kind of at the end of my rope as a conventional pitcher. Hershiser watched me play catch on the side for a couple of years throwing a knuckleball and thought I had a good one. We would throw it in a game every once in a while.

They watched Tim Wakefield come in and beat us up a few times and were hopeful they could develop one of those kinds of guys. They asked me if I would be willing to do it, and they bluntly and gracefully told me what I had as a conventional pitcher probably wasn’t going to cut it anymore. I could see the writing on the wall a little bit when it came to my conventional stuff.

I committed in 2005 to go down to Triple-A and try to figure out how to be a full-time knuckleballer where I threw it 70 to 80 percent of the time. That’s when I started my knuckleball journey.

It was actually three people: Hershiser, Mark Connor, who was our bullpen coach and a really good friend, and Buck. They all agreed that they thought I could do it and gave me the runway to make mistakes with it. The front office was great with it, and Jon Daniels and John Hart were great with it.

MMO: Were there specific drills or mechanical adjustments you needed to make to train and get comfortable with the pitch?

Dickey: I was always trying to simplify. A knuckleball is the art of repeating a mechanic of if you can produce a ball that does not spin. And that’s really hard to do. You’re having to unlearn a mechanic that you have known since you were little and relearn a mechanic that can produce a ball like that.

My best knuckleball would be a ball that rotated a quarter of a revolution from the time it left my hand until the time it got to the catcher’s mitt. That took a lot of simplification of mechanics and repeatability.

Honestly, the drill work I did was just trying to figure out—over and over again against a brick wall or a cinderblock wall in a gym—whatever I could do to try and get the grip right, my mechanic right and my release point right where I didn’t have to think about it. If you have to think about it, usually it’s not going to turn out well. I wanted it to be something that I did so much with my muscle memory that when I threw it, I didn’t have to worry about it not spinning, and knew it was not going to spin. That all took repetition.

MMO: How did fellow knuckleball pitchers like Charlie Hough, Phil Niekro and Tim Wakefield aid in your development?

Dickey: They were everything. Without those guys, I would have never achieved any of the heights that I did. Charlie Hough was the first guy I ever met with when it came to trying to figure out how to do it full-time. The very first thing he did was change my grip a little. He didn’t change it a ton, but he changed it enough that it was a really good adjustment that helped me be more consistent.

After that, I got to meet with Tim Wakefield. He was so selfless with his knowledge. I’ll never forget being in Seattle playing for the Mariners; I was trying to make my way back up as a knuckleball pitcher, and I was in the bullpen. He invited me to come watch his bullpen when the Red Sox came to play. He said, “Why don’t you come watch and ask questions?”

That was a competitor, but that’s the bond between knuckleballers because it’s a very difficult thing to do. We want to perpetuate the craft of being a knuckleballer. We share whatever we have to make sure that the pitch doesn’t dissolve. And that’s what their hope was.

I think with me, they saw someone who could maybe carry the torch of being a knuckleballer. Tim poured into me; Phil Niekro poured into me. Charlie, Phil and Tim were all my Jedi Council on the knuckleball. They were all on my speed dial. I would send them a video if I was struggling, and they would help me unpack it and make corrections.

A normal pitching coach doesn’t have a ton of experience with knuckleball guys, so you have to be your own best coach. I had to know what it was like to coach myself. The only way to do that was to ask good questions to people who had done it before me, and those guys had done it well.

MMO: At what point did you become aware that you threw a hard knuckleball? Did you feel you had better control with one over the other?

Dickey: That’s a good question. For me, I could always throw a hard knuckleball. When I started my journey with the Rangers, they wanted me to kind of be like Wakefield. I felt like I had to subtract speed all the time with it. I think that wasn’t my personality with the pitch. It was difficult for me to slow it down that much and throw a high-sixties knuckleball consistently because my arm speed was such that it just would roll up there and I couldn’t get it to not spin.

It was when I did a lot of work with Hough and Niekro that they both said the same thing. They said, “You should be throwing this as hard as you’re capable of throwing it and still subtract spin.” That was an epiphany for me because I had been trying to be someone else for so long with it. My first two years, I was trying to be Tim Wakefield; I was trying to be Charlie Hough. I didn’t really realize that I needed to embrace my own personality with the pitch. My personality with the pitch was that I could throw it hard.

I was working with Niekro, and something kind of clicked when we were working together. He said, “Man, that is an angry knuckleball.” He described it as an “angry pitch.” That really stuck with me. Every knuckleball I threw from then on, I was trying to make angry. The way I made it angry was by throwing it hard.

Once I did that, I realized that I could keep it in the strike zone a lot better, and the hitter had to respect it a lot more if I was in the strike zone or off it. That was a real turning point for me.

MMO: What made the New York Mets an attractive organization to sign your minor league deal with in December 2009?

Dickey: Life’s about relationships and networking. Omar Minaya was an advocate for me. He knew my journey and felt like I could maybe be a contributor there. He sold me on the opportunity that it could be a possibility if I showed that I was consistent with the pitch and they would embrace it. And they did; they stayed true to their word.

I didn’t get a lot of opportunities in big league camp, but when I went down, I tried to make the most of it. They saw that and called me up, and the rest was history. For those three years in New York, it was some of the most fun baseball that I’ve ever played. I had such an idea on how to be consistent with the pitch. That was really what separated me from other guys.

MMO: In 2011, you posted a 15.3 percent strikeout rate. That increased to 24.8 percent in your Cy Young Award-winning season in 2012. Is there anything you can attribute to that near 10 percent increase in strikeout rate?

Dickey: I became able for a couple of years—don’t ask me why I couldn’t do it more consistently before or after—in 2012 and 2013 when I struck out a ton of guys. It was because I could throw a knuckleball that I could elevate that would seem like it was rising. That was a ball that I could manipulate in a way that just didn’t behave like the other knuckleballs would. It presented like it was going to do what it normally does, and then I could keep it elevated.

The things that helped me strike out guys were changing speeds with it, learning how to do that in the strike zone and then being able to throw a hard, elevated knuckleball that stayed on one plane and didn’t break out. It still presented like every other knuckleball that I threw, and that was a big deal! Having the feel for two years is what produced all of those strikeouts, I think.

MMO: It was like you were able to tunnel all the different variations of your knuckleball.

Dickey: I could. I had a good year in 2010, and the reason I felt like I had a good year was because I was throwing strikes with it consistently. It was an anomaly in the league; guys couldn’t prepare for it, and it was hard and I just threw strikes with it.

I induced a lot of weak contact in ’10, but not a lot of strikeouts. The ’11 season was kind of similar, but when ’12 came, I just really had a good feel for it. It was just that time in my process that I’ve been working on it for so long that I could do different things with it and become a real artist with it. Before then, I was more of a workman. I was punching the clock, and I knew what I could do, but I didn’t have a lot of artistry in what I was doing.

In ’12 and ’13, I felt like I could move it around a good bit, and it would behave the way I wanted it to. That’s hard to do with a knuckleball, which I found out from ’14 to ’17. I didn’t necessarily have the same feel as I did for that two-year period.

MMO: Did you stay consistent with your knuckleball grip, or would you tinker with it at all?

Dickey: No, I’ve kept the same grip every single time I threw a knuckleball. I would change my arm path. That’s how I could manipulate the ball in a way that was different from other knuckleballers. I learned if I could be cognizant of my arm path through my release point, I could make it do different things. I had a good feel for that for about four to five years, and those were my best years.

MMO: When you look back on that 2012 season, are there certain starts that stand out?

Dickey: I threw three one-hitters. One of the one-hitters I threw was in 2010 against the Phillies where Cole Hamels was the only hit. That, to me, was a turning point in my confidence with the pitch. It gave me a real sense that I can do this consistently. I have a weapon now that I can trust.

In ’12, I was just in a zone for a long time. I think the back-to-back one-hitters against Tampa and Baltimore were really kind of special. That whole year in general was pretty neat for me.

MMO: What was your routine for taking care of your nails to maintain the grip you wanted on the ball?

Dickey: I had a nail hardener that I used from a company that was kind of a sponsor. I had to make sure they weren’t too long because they would bend. A bend in the nail would promote spin on the ball. I wanted to take as much spin off the ball as possible.

It was all about the angle at which I filed my nails; it was important because I wanted as much surface area as I could to impact the baseball. I would play around with that in the dugout in between starts. There was a lot of attention to that just because it’s such a vital part of my pitch.

I always felt funny because I was going to be embarrassed if I had to miss a start because of a broken nail; I thought that was so weenie. [Laughs.] There were times I would crack a nail, and I would have to battle through just like a guy with an arm injury. It was bizarre, but we figured it out.

MMO: For your career, no catcher caught more of your games than Josh Thole (164). What made Thole such a strong batterymate?

Dickey: He knew what I wanted before I stepped on the rubber. There were a lot of games when he didn’t even put down a sign. He knew that I wanted to throw a fastball in, and we didn’t even have to put down a sign. The communication was great.

He had a great knack for being able to receive a knuckleball in a way that you never saw him jab at it. Most guys are taught to kind of get underneath the pitch to frame it, or get on the side of it, or catch it as it’s coming into the strike zone. And you can’t do that with a knuckleball because it breaks so sharp and late. You’ve got to let it come to you and just react.

He had great hand-eye coordination and no ego at all. He would catch all of my pens and throw with me in the outfield. Thole would do everything he could to try to be the best at it because he knew that was something I needed and depended on. He made himself really good at it. That probably helped him stay in the major leagues for a couple of years.

MMO: What was your initial reaction when you heard you were traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in the winter of 2012?

Dickey: I think my initial reaction was sadness. I loved my experience with the Mets and didn’t want to go, but I certainly understood it as an older veteran and professional and I was getting close to 40. So I was not under the illusion that the world revolved around me.

I love Sandy Alderson and thought he was a great GM. We had a great relationship, and he was always honest with me. I knew that they were shopping it around, and I knew why. It made a lot of sense to me as a business decision, but it didn’t stop the emotional reaction. I was leaving a place where I had kind of resurrected a career and shared a lot of incredible moments with incredible people and fans. It was a special time for me.

Once I got over the sadness, I was excited. The team we were trying to put together in Toronto was pretty neat. We ended up going to the playoffs two of the four years I was there. So it was great.

MMO: What are some things you’ve been up to since retiring from playing?

Dickey: I’m just being a full-time father and husband; that’s why I left the game. I didn’t leave because I couldn’t do it anymore. In my last year, I threw almost 200 innings for the Braves (190 innings in 2017). I left because it was time for me to be a father full-time. I’ve missed so much of my kids’ lives. Now I probably overcompensate; they want me to go back and play. [Laughs.] I’ve loved being a dad and being a husband to a woman who did it all herself for so long.

We have a 40-acre farm in Franklin, Tenn. I get to be involved in my community, coach my son’s high school team and be with my kids. It’s been a real blessing.

MMO: Do you help advise or teach other pitchers the knuckleball?

Dickey: Yes! I’ve been able to go to a couple of different spring trainings and work with guys who have the potential to go down that path. I talk with them about some mechanical adjustments and try to help them be consistent or equip them with something that might help them break through. That’s been really fun. I talk on Zoom or calls with different clubs about guys in their organization.

My hope is to see a couple more knuckleballers within the next five years. I don’t know if we’re going to get that, but there’s a kid in San Diego whose knuckleball I love. There are enough good potential knuckleball pitchers out there who can maybe do it. I’m hoping one of them is going to break through.

The post MMO Exclusive: A Conversation with R.A. Dickey appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

While the hot stove is currently buried in 10 feet of snow, MLB has announced some news regarding 2025 Opening Day. On March 27, which will be MLB Opening Day, ESPN will have extra coverage, as they’ll be showcasing a doubleheader to kick off the season. The two World Series representatives will be in action; the first game will be the Milwaukee Brewers taking on the New York Yankees in the Bronx at 3 p.m., while the Los Angeles Dodgers will host the Detroit Tigers in Chavez Ravine at 7 p.m.

Oct 26, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto (22) celebrates after hitting a solo home run in the third inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during game two of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Latest Mets News

The Mets ranked 28th in farm system hitting rankings, based on data from all leagues and levels, per Dylan White of Baseball America.

Keith Hernandez‘s longtime beloved cat Hadji passed away last week at the age of 22, the ’86 World Series champion announced on twitter.

Latest MLB News

Now-former Blue Jays assistant major league hitting coach Matt Hague is accepting a job as the Pittsburgh Pirates’ hitting coach, per Scott Mitchell of TSN Sports. 

The All-MLB Team Awards Show will be happening on Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET on MLB Network. 

The Pittsburgh Pirates are signing Brent Strom as an assistant pitching coach, per Noah Hiles of The Pittsburgh Gazette. 

Diamond Sports Group, owner of Bally Sports, have agreed to a multi-year deal with Amazon Prime Video, per Evan Drellich of The Athletic. However, this does not mean you can watch your local team, as you will have to buy an additional add-on to do so.

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Take a look at a possible infield addition for the Mets, Willy Adames.

MMO gave Mets backup catcher Luis Torrens a grade for his 2024 season.

Could the Mets look to add another southpaw to their rotation? Get to know Garret Crochet!

On This Date in Mets History

2018: Jacob deGrom receives 29 of 30 first place votes en route to his first Cy Young Award. DeGrom finished the season with a 1.70 ERA and a 218 ERA+.

2012: R.A. Dickey becomes the third different Met to win the Cy Young Award. Dickey became the first knuckleballer to earn the award, while tallying 20 wins and a 2.73 ERA in his award-winning season.

1986: Nelson Doubleday and Fred Wilpon purchase the Mets from Doubleday & Co. for $80.75 million, splitting the franchise at 50% apiece.

Born On This Date: Francisco Lindor (1993), Akeel Morris (1992) Joely Rodríguez (1991), Xavier Nady (1978), Tim Hamulack (1976), Darrell Sutherland (1941), Jim Piersall (1929).

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When we think of Cy Young awards and New York Mets pitchers, the first guy that likely comes to mind these days is Jacob deGrom — winning two in a row will do that.

He’s not the only Mets hurler to take home those honors in the past decade, of course — R.A. Dickey accomplished the feat while deGrom was in High-A.

There’s no point in comparing the two because the sample sizes — and results — are incredibly lopsided. For example, deGrom has won just 21 games over the past two seasons, while his performance has been worth 16.0 fWAR. As for Dickey, his magical performance led to nearly as many wins (20) and not nearly as much fWAR (4.7). But DeGrom put together some historically dominant stretches en route to winning this award twice, and the same was true for Dickey.

After all, it’s difficult to post a 20-6 record with a 2.73 ERA, a 3.25 SIERA, and a 1.05 WHIP in 233.2 innings without wiping the floor with the opposition with some form of regularity. The knuckleballer threw at least 30 innings in each month of the 2012 season and posted an ERA south of 3.20 on four occasions. Upon looking at his splits, though, there was one specific stretch where he was mostly untouchable, which likely helped propel him to winning the award: the month of June.

Anyway you slice it, the 48.1 frames Dickey tossed in June was just off the chain, and head-and-shoulders better than any other month during this year-long campaign.

The ERA Ride

Here’s a peek at how Dickey’s monthly ERA and wOBA allowed progressed each month.

It’s not surprising that his four highest monthly innings pitched totals all came in the instances where his ERA was below that 3.20 mark. I mean, when you pitch well, you get to pitch deeper in games.

June sticks out because it’s the highest total. No other qualified starter in baseball threw more innings than Dickey during that 30-day span, and nobody posted an ERA lower than him. He also led the league with 2.0 fWAR, meaning about 43.0% of his year-end fWAR total came in approximately 20.0% of the work.

Of the six starts Dickey made, he threw fewer than seven innings just once, which came on June 24th against the New York Yankees when he allowed five runs in six innings. The other five starts? He allowed just one run, and it wasn’t even an earned run. This stretch also included three of his five complete-game efforts for the entire year: a seven-hit shutout against the St. Louis Cardinals on June 2nd and consecutive one-hitters against the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles on June 13th and June 18th, respectively.

The Strikeout and Walk Rate Progression

When looking at how Dickey’s strikeout and walk numbers progressed throughout the season, it shows a build-up to June and a gradual drop afterward, for the most part.

Once again, that June start against the Yankees stands as the outlier during an other-worldly stretch of success. Dickey struck out just three in that appearance, and it was the only time he exited a June start with fewer than eight punchouts.

He piled up a total of 25 during those consecutive one-hit complete games and finished off the month with 10 against the Los Angeles Dodgers in eight innings on June 29th. The knuckler piled up seven different single-game performances of 10-plus strikeouts, meaning just about half of them came in a four-start stretch.

Dominating Quality of Contact

Obviously, the tricky part about throwing a knuckleball is it has a mind of its own. Dickey can have a good feel for the pitch, but even he didn’t know exactly what the ball would do given the conditions he was throwing it in. Once again — as if there was any surprise — June stands out as the best stretch for him with regard to managing the contact of opposing hitters.

Here’s a look at how the batted-ball profile shook out each month.

I looked at this for a couple minutes and tried to pick just one June rate that really stuck out, but it’s impossible. All of them put together is just so crazy. With the rate at which he was inducing ground balls and limiting hard contact, giving up just one home run was basically expected.

When using FanGraphs’ Game Score statistic as the measuring stick, four of his six June starts are classified as his best single-season performances from 2012.

Would he have still won the Cy Young if this month was more in line with what he did in other months? Maybe, but who knows. Either way, it’s easy to see that this stretch of domination is what propelled him to an easy victory in the voting, taking home 27 of 32 first-place votes.

The post The Unequivocal Peak of R.A. Dickey’s Cy Young Season appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

The Mets’ London hangover did not last for too long as they took Game 2 of the series in a big way.

Harrison Bader opened the game with a bang, sending a ball to the left field seats and giving the Mets an early 2-0 lead over the Marlins. While the Marlins evened things back up, a three-run second inning answer gave the Mets the lead for good. The Amazin’s piled on from there, resulting in a 10-4 win to get things back on track. Click here for a full game report.

The Mets sent left-hander Danny Young to Triple-A Syracuse after the game, per Tim Healey. This opens up a roster spot for Edwin Díaz.

The Mets look to take Game 3 of the series on Thursday at 7:10 ET as Luis Severino (4-2, 3.25 ERA) will go for the Mets and Roddery Muñoz (1-2, 5.95 ERA) will be on the mound for Miami.

Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

Latest Mets News

Young won Baseball Prospectus Pitch of the Day on Tuesday with his sweeper, which covered over 23″ of horizontal break and had an IVB of -4.9″.

Carlos Mendoza said that Díaz will be the Mets closer upon his return on Thursday, per Tim Healey of Newsday.

Christian Scott had a short but sweet start for Triple-A Syracuse: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K. The Mets are continuing to manage his workload. Click here for a full breakdown of his start.

Brett Baty tallied two hits in Triple-A Syracuse Tuesday.

McDonald’s mascot Grimace threw out the first pitch at Citi Field last night.

Grimace threw out the first pitch tonight at Citi Field 🟣 pic.twitter.com/9i9vEWpDxz

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) June 12, 2024

Drew Gilbert was named the Mets prospect with the best power-speed combo by MLB.com.

Latest MLB News

The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired INF/OF Cavan Biggio in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays, where they sent RHP Braydon Fisher to Toronto.

The Chicago Cubs signed Jorge López to a minor league deal, per Andy Martínez of Marquee Sports Network. López was designated for assignment by the Mets on May 30th.

The Chicago White Sox DFA’d left-handed relief pitcher Tim Hill.

Latest on MMO

Christian Scott looks to make his return to the big leagues.

The Mets defensive woes continue to be a thorn in their side.

Brett Baty continues to hit in Triple-A.

On This Date in Mets History

2012: R.A. Dickey throws a one-hitter in a 9-1 Mets victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. Dickey also set a franchise record during the start, going 32 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings. 

1988: Lee Mazzilli gives the Mets a win over the Cardinals with a walk-off RBI single in the 12th inning. David Cone went 10 innings of one-run ball, striking out seven and throwing 130 pitches. 

1986: Darryl Strawberry walks off the Pirates with an RBI single, avenging Jesse Orosco, who gave up two runs in the top of the ninth.

Birthdays: James McCann (34)

The post Morning Briefing: Mets Option Danny Young to Make Room for Edwin Díaz appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Mets veteran outfielder Starling Marte is looking to play in the Dominican Winter League, but there are some hoops to jump through prior to doing so. Marte, who missed most of the last two months of the 2023 season due to a groin injury, needs to get the Mets’ clearance to play in the winter league. Mike Mayer of Metsmerized Online reported that Marte was at practice on Wednesday with the Leones del Escodigo, the team said that he took batting practice and is waiting for clearance from the Mets to activate him.

This will not be an easy decision for the Mets as Marte has been dealing with groin injuries dating back to the 2022 season, including undergoing surgery in the offseason prior to the 2023.

Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Latest Mets News

The Mets continued to add to their 2024 roster while they wait on a decision from Yoshinobu Yamamoto, as they traded for starting pitcher Adrian Houser and outfielder Tyrone Taylor from the Milwaukee Brewers. The trade, which was first reported by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, will be sending back pitching prospect Coleman Crow to Milwaukee. For an in-depth look into the deal check out MMO’s article on it!

Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that the Mets have shown interest in Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Woodruff, and could be a real possibility if they do not land Yoshinobu Yamamoto. To see who else the Mets reportedly have show interest in click here!

The New York Mets are looking for a full-time pro player personnel associate, check out the Mets’ Fan Graphs job listing. 

Latest MLB News

Japanese reliever Yuki Matsui agreed to a four-year, $21 million deal with the San Diego Padres, per Yahoo Japan. The 5’8” closer posted a 1.53 ERA in 57.1 IP in his 2023 season in the NPB.

Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright released a song dedicated to Cardinals fans titled “Time to Fly.” Along with that, he also announced on his Twitter page that he will be releasing a full album on February 23.

The Milwaukee Brewers signed veteran free agent catcher Eric Haase to a one-year major league contract. 

Former Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Taylor Widener signed with the Braves on a minor league contract, per MLB.com. Widener spent the past season playing for two different clubs in the KBO and now looks to find his way onto a major league roster. 

The Los Angeles Dodgers continue to add organizational depth as they signed relief pitcher Nabil Crismatt and outfielder Travis Swaggerty to minor league deals, per MLB.com. 

Latest on MMO

Metsmerized Online’s twitter page is giving away a signed Ron Darling baseball card. Follow MMO’s account and repost the giveaway post to enter!

Check out our free agent profile on a possible Mets free agent target, Gio Urshela!

The 2019 Mets shock the 2000 Mets in MMO’s Mets Madness!

On This Date in Mets History

2009: The New York Mets sign pitcher R.A. Dickey to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training. The knuckleballer would go on to win the 2012 National League Cy Young Award with the club, posting a 2.73 ERA while winning 20 games. 

1998: Relief pitcher Pat Mahomes signs with the New York Mets. Mahomes would post a 2.25 ERA in eight innings of work in the 1999 postseason and was also a part of the Mets 2000 National League winning club. 

Birthdays: Taylor Teagarden (40), John Mayberry (40), Philip Humber (41), Royce Ring (43), Dicky González (45), Buddy Carlyle (46), LaTroy Hawkins (51), Roger McDowell (63), Dave Kingman (75), Elliott Maddox (76)

The post Morning Briefing: Starling Marte Looking for Clearance to Play in Winter League appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Mets owner Steve Cohen held a press conference on Wednesday where he assessed the state of the team as the Mets have fallen to fourth place in the NL East despite having the largest payroll in baseball. After the Mets’s blowup in Philadelphia on Sunday, there were many questions about GM Billy Eppler and manager Buck Showalter‘s job security; Cohen put those rumors to rest as he responded “Absolutely” after being asked if the two will keep their jobs throughout the season. Cohen also commented on the Mets’ mindset regarding the trade deadline as well as future front office moves, which you can read about here.

As for on the field, the Mets suffered yet another disappointing loss as they fell to the Brewers, 5-2. New York was unable to cash in on some early opportunities against Wade Miley, while Kodai Senga pushed through five solid innings of two-run ball. The Mets offense was not able to muster up any runs in the late innings as the Brewers bullpen put the game to bed.

The Mets will try to split the four-game set as they throw Max Scherzer (7-2) against Milwaukee’s Adrian Houser (2-2).

Latest Mets News

It was announced on Thursday that José Quintana will be making his fourth, and hopefully last, rehab start for Triple-A Syracuse on Friday. Quintana, who is coming back from a left rib fracture, threw 47 pitches through his four innings of work for High-A Brooklyn on Sunday and is hoped to be back in the Mets rotation by next week.

Mets pitching prospect Christian Scott has been dealing as of late, and that continued as he threw seven scoreless innings last night in his third Double-A start. The 2021 fifth0round draft pick out of Florida has accumulated 23 strikeouts and a 1.37 ERA in his three starts in Binghamton while allowing two or less runs in seven consecutive starts, per Metsmerized Michael Mayer.

Latest MLB News

Yankees starter Domingo Germán faced the minimum last night as he became the first pitcher since Félix Hernández in 2012 to throw a perfect game. Germán made quick work of the Athletics last night as he only threw 99 pitches on his way to perfection becoming the fourth Yankees pitcher to throw a perfect game; joining a list that includes: Don Larsen, David Wells, and David Cone.

White Sox reliever and cancer survivor, Liam Hendriks, will be the recipient of the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance at the 2023 ESPYS. Hendriks made his triumphant return to a major league mound on May 29 after his bout with Stage-4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which he was diagnosed with this past December.

Pirates third-baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes was put on the 10-day IL (retroactive to June 25), due to lower back inflammation. In a corresponding move, Pittsburgh called up third baseman Jared Triolo who made his big league debut against the San Diego Padres last night. Hayes joins Bryan Reynolds and O’Neil Cruz on the IL as the Pirates have been inundated with injuries while their quick start has come to a halt.

Cardinals star third baseman Nolan Arenado left Wednesday night’s game against the Houston Astros with lower back tightness, the team said.  Arenado, who tied the game with a three-run home run earlier in the game, is said to be day-to-day and the Cardinals are hoping he can avoid time on the IL.

Latest on MMO

Rich Sparago looked into the possible causes of the MLB’s attendance increase this season.

On This Date In Mets History

1969: Tom Seaver notches his 44th career win to take hold of the franchise record in wins. Seaver still holds said record with 198 career wins.

2012: R.A. Dickey throws eight shutout innings to propel the Mets past the Dodgers. This gem improved his ERA to 2.15 and record to 12-1.

Birthdays: Yolmer Sanchez (31), Brooks Raley (35), Larry Stahl (82)

The post Morning Briefing: Showalter, Eppler Will ‘Absolutely’ Retain Their Jobs appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Two of the most popular Mets pitchers of the recent past are set to make their return to Citi Field this season. According to a report from Newsday Sports’ Anthony Rieber, Bartolo Colon will be back at Citi Field on May 7 to commemorate the seven-year anniversary of his epic home run in San Diego. Additionally, Rieber reports that former National League CY Young Award winner R.A. Dickey will return to Citi Field on June 13, 11 years after he threw two consecutive one-hitters.

The returns are part of the Mets incorporating fan-friendly events this season to replace Old Timers’ Day, which will not take place in 2023 after its successful return lastseason. As Mets vice president of alumni public relations Jay Horowitz explained to Rieber, the team felt it needed some space before bringing Old Timers’ Day back.

“Everything went just great last year, said Horowitz, who organized the return of Old-Timers’ Day. ‘To recreate that is really hard the year after. We just felt we needed a little time to breathe, for lack of a better word. What we’re doing is we’re bringing back our alumni for certain days.”

In addition to the returns of Colon and Dickey, the team also plans to host Mets legends Mookie Wilson, Tim Teufel, and Turk Wendell ahead of Thursday’s home opener, as well as  similar fan-friendly events with Darryl Strawberry and Howard Johnson  later in the season, according to Rieber.

Additionally, the Mets will induct Johnson, Horowitz, Al Leiter, Gary Cohen, and Howie Rose to the team’s Hall of Fame on June 3.

The post Report: Colon, Dickey to Return to Citi Field This Season appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Good morning, Mets fans!

Former St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Scott Rolen has entered baseball infamy as he has accumulated enough votes to enter the Baseball Hall of Fame. Rolen enters as the lone ballot Hall of Famer this year and will join Fred McGriff, who was inducted by the Contemporary Baseball Era committee in December.

Several players with Mets connections have missed the 75% cut-off this year, including Jeff Kent, who was in his last year of eligibility. Carlos Beltran, Gary Sheffield and Francisco Rodriguez are among the other notable players with Mets connections to miss the cut. Beltrán and Rodríguez were on the HOF ballots for the first time this year.

Former Mets pitcher R.A. Dickey only received 0.3% of the HOF votes and has been kicked off the ballot for not receiving at least 5%.

Latest Mets News

The Mets have officially announced the signing of outfielder Tommy Pham to a one-year deal. Formerly with the Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds this past season, Pham will facilitate a role as the team’s fourth outfielder and may even see time in the designated hitter spot if needed. To make room for Pham on the 40-man roster, the team designated left-handed Tayler Saucedo for assignment.

We’ve signed Tommy Pham to a one-year deal.

Welcome to the squad, @TphamLV! pic.twitter.com/oNvsL8jzLZ

— New York Mets (@Mets) January 24, 2023

The New York Post‘s Andrew Marchand is reporting the Mets may have found the next sidekick to legendary radio announcer Howie Rose. Long Island native and voice for the Single-A Brooklyn Cyclones Keith Raad has emerged as the favorite to be hired for the position as he apparently “wowed” his interview with Audacy, the parent company of WCBS Radio, and Rose himself. The role could one day lead to being the main radio voice of the Mets with Rose cutting down on radio time this past season.

Latest MLB News

Chicago White Sox pitcher Mike Clevinger is under investigation by MLB following allegations of domestic violence involving the mother of his 10-month-old daughter and child abuse, according to The Athletic‘s Britt Ghiroli and Katie Strang. The report says the mother of Clevinger’s child had been in contact with MLB officials since June about physical, verbal and emotional abuse towards her and their 10-month-old child.

After the Los Angeles Angels’ ownership decided to take the team off the market, the Miami Marlins ownership has reiterated the team is not for sale. In a statement to the LA Times, Bruce Sherman said, “The Miami Marlins are not for sale, have not been for sale under my ownership, and will not be for sale in my lifetime. It is irresponsible to report otherwise. It is and will continue to be a privilege to own this great organization. I look forward to seeing our loyal fans at Opening Day on March 30th.”

Kansas City Royals infielder Adalberto Mondesi is being traded to the Red Sox, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. The Royals will receive Josh Taylor in exchange, while Boston will also receive a player to be named later. The move comes with Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story having elbow surgery that will sideline him for most of the 2023 season.

Former Marlins and Baltimore Orioles first baseman Jesus Aguilar and the Oakland Athletics are in agreement on a contract, pending physical, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle and Robert Murray of Fansided. The deal will give Aguilar an average of about $3 million.

The New York Yankees and catching coach Tanner Swanson agreed to a new deal to keep the coach in the Bronx, according to Brendan Kuty of The Athletic. The deal is for three years with a team option for a fourth year. Yankees catchers ranked as some of the best defensively in MLB last season and much of that is attributed to Swanson’s coaching.

Pitcher Jordan Yamamoto has signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers, according to MMO‘s Michael Mayer. Yamamoto had a 6.00 ERA across three different levels in the Mets minor league system in 2022.

Latest on MMO

Rich Sparago talks about possible locations for MLB expansion teams.

On This Date in Mets History

2006: Angel Pagan is purchased by the Chicago Cubs from the New York Mets.

2010: “Melody Queen of Shea Stadium” organist Jane Jarvis passes away at 94.

The post Morning Briefing: Several Former Mets Fall Short of Hall of Fame appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

This offseason, we’re looking at the Mets’ history with free agency: their best uses of money and their worst. Number 10 was an unlikely pitcher who turned into one of the best performers during the late 1990s and early 2000s while also becoming one of the most underrated players in team history. We continue with another pitcher who pathed a unique road to stardom.  

The knuckleball is the most fascinating, and now rarest, pitch in baseball. It’s impossible to know where it will land once it leaves a pitcher’s hand. R.A. Dickey‘s career, much like that pitch he primarily used, was in considerable flux after the 2009 season.

But over a span of three years, Dickey went from minor league signee to Cy Young Award winner. In between, he led the Mets in ERA over his tenure in New York and totaled a 12.9 WAR with a 1.150 WHIP. The peak of his Cinderella story came in 2012, a year that saw him become the best pitcher in the league. Dickey topped the NL in games started, complete games, shutouts, innings pitched, strikeouts, and batters faced, tossed consecutive one-hitters, made his first All-Star Game, and became a 20-game winner.

With his value high and the Mets’ hopes for contention still far away, Dickey was traded to Toronto. It was a deal that brought prospects Noah Syndergaard and Travis d’Arnaud to the Mets system, making the payoff for this modest acquisition even more lucrative.

Dickey defied the odds by simply making it into professional baseball. Even without an ulnar collator ligament, he became a first-round draft pick of the Texas Rangers. He spent parts of his first seven seasons with three clubs, during which he converted himself into a knuckleballer. Yet he wasn’t finding even modest success. So when the Mets inked the 35-year-old to a contract on December 21, 2009, the team optioned him to Triple-A Buffalo where he’d provide depth and perhaps even be a de facto coach to the younger pitchers.

When there was a hole to fill in the big-league rotation early in 2010, Dickey got the call. His age was never a concern as much as past performance. Thirty-five for an ordinary pitcher is on the older side, but like the Niekros and Charlie Hough before him, it has little effect on one who tosses a flutterball that relies on precision more than power.

Dickey pitched well right away and finished the year with 2.84 ERA. He was solid again the next year, leading the club in innings pitched. But as good as those two seasons were, they couldn’t have prepared anyone for what Dickey would do in 2012.

He won seven of his first eight decisions through May with an ERA close to 3.00. Then came June, which was especially historic. Dickey established the Mets’ franchise record for scoreless innings at 32.2 (which would eventually grow to 44.2). It was on that same night he held Tampa to one hit (and some argue it shouldn’t have even been that many).

Five days later, he somehow topped himself. Not only did he throw another one-hitter (this against Baltimore), he set a career-high in strikeouts with 13. Dickey became the only pitcher to throw consecutive one-hitters with at least 10 Ks and he became the only pitcher in major league history to have five consecutive starts without giving up any earned runs and still getting at least eight strikeouts in each.

Dickey matched that career-high strikeout total on September 27 on the same occasion in which he got win No. 20. While that number remains a milestone for pitchers in spite of its depreciating value, it was his 2.73 ERA, as well as his league-leading 2330 strikeouts five complete games, and three shutouts that sinched the Cy Young.

R.A. Dickey never reached the same heights after that tremendous 2012 season, but his career was still a triumph as evidenced by his recent inclusion on the 2023 Hall of Fame ballot. Dickey’s success as a Met is one of the more pleasant surprises. And his unexpected rise to be the NL Cy Young winner, considering what he overcame beyond the playing field, is one of the heartwarming stories of any baseball player.

The post Mets Best Free-Agent Signing No. 9: R.A. Dickey appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Age: 30 (8/29/1992)
B/T: L/R

2022 Traditional Stats: 24 GS, 10-10 record, 134 2/3 IP, 3.94 ERA, 1.255 WHIP, 95 SO, 31 BB
2022 Advanced Stats: 103 ERA+, 3.83 FIP, 16.8 SO%, 5.5 BB%, 1.6 bWAR

Rundown

It’s impossible to tell the story of the New York Mets during the last decade without mentioning Noah Syndergaard. Acquired by the team back in 2012 as part of the deal that sent then-reigning Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey to the Toronto Blue Jays, Syndergaard made his major league debut in 2015, posting a 9-7 record with a 3.24 ERA in 24 starts. Syndergaard finished top five in the NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2015 and made three starts during the Mets’ postseason run, securing the team’s only winning decision of that year’s World Series.

Syndergaard was even better in 2016, posting a 14-9 record with a 2.60 ERA and earning votes for both the Cy Young and MVP awards. He was named an All-Star for the first and so far only time in his career, and he pitched seven shutout innings in the Mets’ Wild Card Game loss to the San Francisco Giants. The Thor experience had arrived in Queens, and Syndergaard seemed destined for greatness.

However, Syndergaard was unable to reach those lofty heights again in a Mets uniform. He made just seven starts in the 2017 season before being diagnosed with a torn lat muscle. He rebounded well in 2018 (13-4 record, 3.03 ERA), but he struggled in 2019 and ended up pitching just two innings across the 2020 and 2021 seasons while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Syndergaard became a free agent after the 2021 season, and the Los Angeles Angles decided to take a flyer on the former ace, signing him to a one-year, $21 million contract. He was a serviceable pitcher for the Angels, posting a 5-8 record with a 3.83 ERA across 15 starts.

With the Angels going nowhere this past season, the team shipped him off to the Philadelphia Phillies at the trade deadline. He made nine starts for the Phillies in the regular season, going 5-2 with a 4.12 ERA, and he featured in four games for the team during their World Series run.

Syndergaard has had to reinvent himself as a pitcher post-Tommy John surgery, and his early returns are a mixed bag. His velocity was way down from his flamethrowing days in Queens, from a 98.7 mph average fastball velocity in 2016 to a 94.0 mph average fastball velocity in 2022. His strikeout numbers suffered severely as a result, plummeting to a paltry 6.3 strikeouts per nine innings. His walk rate stayed pretty consistent with his career numbers, as did his WHIP and home runs per nine.

The most important revelation for Syndergaard in 2022 was that he was able to make it through a full season of pitching. He made 24 starts, pitching 134 2/3 innings and even firing off a complete game. He may not be the same pitcher that dominated opposing lineups in 2016, but if his antics during the 2022 postseason are anything to go by, his big-game personality and his desire to win are as strong as ever.

Contract

Syndergaard signed with the Angels prior to this past season with the intention of proving his worth and earning himself a large, multi-year contract this offseason. He may have done just that, as Spotrac.com estimates his market value is worth a four-year contract for $61 million, an average annual salary that would place him among the top 30 highest-earning starting pitchers in the league.

His numbers and injury history will likely keep him from receiving a contract offer of that length, but an AAV in the $15 million region might not be too far off. There will undoubtedly be a team out there that takes a flyer on the 30-year-old Syndergaard, banking on his continued development as he is now a full year removed from his Tommy John surgery rehab.

Recommendation

The Mets would be foolish not to at least consider a reunion with Syndergaard given the current state of the team’s starting rotation. Taijuan Walker is free agent after a solid 2022 season, and both Jacob deGrom and Chris Bassitt will be hot commodities in free agency. The Mets have yet to exercise Carlos Carrasco’s team option for the 2023 season, and even if they do, they will be left with just two starters from the team’s full-strength starting rotation last season in Carrasco and Max Scherzer.

The Mets do have plenty of young arms to fill in those missing spots, most notably David Peterson and Tylor Megill. The team may also target some of the top-end starting pitching options such as deGrom or Carlos Rodon to pair with Scherzer.

Still, it would make sense to add some veteran leadership to the backend of the pitching staff, just as they did with Walker and Carrasco this past year. If so, there are few names that would appear to be more fitting for the job than the man that Mets fans affectionately nicknamed “Thor” all those years ago.

The post MMO Free Agent Profile: Noah Syndergaard, SP appeared first on Metsmerized Online.