Blue Jays Land Cy Young Winner Dickey

The Mets have traded 2012 Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey to the Blue Jays as the centerpiece of a seven-player deal. (Jim McIsaac)

After days and days of trade rumors, the New York Mets are officially trading 2012 National League Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey to the Toronto Blue Jays. Dickey reached an agreement with his new ball club on a two-year, $25 million extension that was the final piece to the trade going through.

The Blue Jays acquired Dickey, catcher Josh Thole and minor league catcher Mike Nickeas In exchange, the Mets receive top prospects Travis d'Arnaud and Noah Syndergaard, along with veteran catcher John Buck and minor leaguer Wuilmer Becerra. The Blue Jays paid a hefty price in terms of talent, but they believe Dickey could be the one piece they need going into next season.

"Clearly, he won the Cy Young. He's pitched like one the last three years," said general manager Alex Anthopoulos. "I think he doesn't get the credit and the respect he deserves because of his age and because of what he does throw. And I understand it's so rare. But there's so much overwhelming data and evidence to point to him continuing this success. He's gotten better every single year."

The Blue Jays won back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 1993, but have not gone to the playoffs since. They have tried to rebuild through their farm system and prospects, but have yet to get past the big boys atop the AL East. However, with the New York Yankees passing on top free agents as part of an austerity plan and the Boston Red Sox are reconstructing, the Blue Jays have decided to roll the dice and try and win now.

Toronto's busy offseason got kicked off last month with a blockbuster trade with the Miami Marlins. They acquired veteran starting pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle, All-star shortstop Jose Reyes and utility man Emilio Bonifacio. The Blue Jays were also busy in the free agent market. They signed outfielder Melky Cabrera to a two-year deal and infielder Maicer Izturis to a three-year contract.

The Blue Jays brought back John Gibbons as manager. As of right now, the 2013 rotation and lineup might look something like this.


1. R.A. Dickey
2. Brandon Morrow
3. Mark Buehrle
4. Josh Johnson
5. Ricky Romero

1. SS Jose Reyes
2. LF Melky Cabrera
3. RF Jose Bautista
4. 1B/DH Edwin Encarnacion
5. DH/1B Adam Lind
6. 3B Brett Lawrie
7. CF Colby Rasmus
8. C J.P. Arencibia
9. 2B Emilio Bonifacio/Maicer Izturis

That is a ball club that will definitely be ready to compete in a loaded AL East and for a shot at a return to the postseason. It will be interesting to see if Anthopoulos has any more moves up his sleeves before we reach Spring Training.

The Mets will not be a team competing for much of anything next season. They did trade the reigning Cy Young winner and fan favorite, but you have to consider the bottom line in terms of the future.The Mets have had four straight fourth-place finishes in the NL East, and the Washington Nationals, Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies are the division favorites once again. The Mets were destined for a repeat finish in 2013 with or without Dickey.

The future though has become much brighter for a team in desperate need of something positive. General manager Sandy Alderson looked for a package of prospects, like he did with Carlos Beltran two trading deadlines ago. The cornerstone of that trade, right-hander Zack Wheeler, has developed into the club's top prospect. The Mets now add highly acclaimed catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud as well as Class A right-hander Noah Syndergaard to the mix from the Dickey trade.

D'Arnaud is a catcher who is able to hit well and has a lot of skills behind the plate. He is viewed as a difference maker who will play in the big leagues for more than a decade. Syndergaard was regarded as the Blue Jays' best pitching prospect by many scouts. He is a hard-throwing 20-year old who is capable of developing into a front of the rotation starter.

The Mets are starting to piece together a solid young nucleus for a few years down the road. They may not be contenders this season or the next, but they are rebuilding in the right direction. If you are a Mets fan, just hope for the best and check your minor league box scores to see how your future stars are doing as they grow and develop.

R.A. Dickey's Knuckleball Keeps Getting Better and Better

R.A. Dickey gave up just one hit over nine innings. (Chris O'Meara)

Knuckleballers appear to be a fading tradition. When legendary Tim Wakefield retired, it seemed to leave a void in the American pastime. That void has quickly been filled and than some this season by the play of R.A. Dickey.

If you knew of Dickey prior to this season, you knew that he was a knuckleballer and that was about it. He bounced around with a few ball clubs, but found only limited success. Even as recent as last season, Dickey finished with a 8-13 record with a 3.28 ERA. Decent numbers, but certainly not anything worth writing home about.

Somehow at age 37, Dickey began to turn things around, especially this season. He worked on improving his knuckleball and his control of it. Whatever Dickey did, his play as of late has been impeccable as a result. All he did tonight against the Tampa Bay Rays tonight was pitch a complete game one-hitter, while striking out a career-high 12 batters.

In the start tonight, Dickey broke the Mets' franchise record for scoreless innings with 32 2/3 innings. Oh and in case you haven't heard, it hasn't been just tonight. In Dickey's last five starts, he has pitched a combined 39 2/3 innings (out of 45 possible), given up just one run, walked only three batters, and struck out 50 hitters. Those kind of numbers are unheard of by anyone, let alone a knuckleballer. The pitch is so difficult to be in control of and consistent with, but Dickey has been able to master the art.

Dickey is MLB's first 10-game winner this season. At this point, he has to be among the frontrunners for the NL Cy Young and to start the All-Star game as well. Dating back to May 20, 2011, Dickey has given up four runs or less in 34 of his last 37 starts. The strikeout numbers as of late are off the charts for a knuckleballer. R.A. Dickey and his knuckleball of an average velocity of 76.6 mph have some of baseball's best hitters puzzled and bewildered. Meanwhile, Dickey is just enjoying the ride. His hard work has truly paid off. He has gone from a young pitcher without a place, to an average speciality pitcher, and now to one of the best pitchers in the game. Dickey clearly deserves to be recognized and is worthy of the praise he has been receiving.

Subway Sweep: Yankees Sweep Series with the Mets

It is that time of year. Interleague baseball. And of course, you can't have interleague baseball without the Subway Series. The series received added hype by how well the Mets had played prior to traveling to the Bronx. I will recap the weekend series and reflect upon what we learned about both sides.

Robinson Cano watches his second home run of the game. (Mike Stobe)

In Friday night's series opener, Johan Santana was on the mound for the Mets for the first time since throwing the first no-hitter in his club's history. He would show no such dominance in this one. The Bronx Bombers lived up to their name as they took Santana deep four times, including two blasts by Robinson Cano. Santana came into the start on extra rest and showed some definite rust. The Yankees countered with Hiroki Kuroda. He was in superb form. Kuroda threw seven innings of one-hit ball, before having to leave the game after taking a liner off his ankle. The Yankees took the opener 9-1.

Phil Hughes gave up just two runs in 6 1/3 innings of work. (Mike Stobe)

The Yankees took the early lead in Saturday night's affair when Alex Rodriguez singled home Derek Jeter for the 1-0 lead. The Mets tied it up in the third on a solo home run by Omar Quintanilla. In the top the sixth, the Mets gained the lead on another solo shot, this one by David Wright. However, in the bottom half of the frame, the Yankees answered with a two-run home run by Mark Teixeira to gain the lead 3-2. Curtis Granderson added an insurance run for the Bombers in the 8th with a solo shot. Rafael Soriano came in and closed out the 4-2 Yankees victory with his ninth save of the season.

Russell Martin prepares to celebrate his walk-off home run. (Al Bello) 

In the series finale, it was the Mets who struck first. In the second inning, they capitalized on an uncharacteristic error by Robinson Cano to score three runs off Yankees starter Andy Pettitte. Mets starter Jonathan Niese was on cruise control, until an error by David Wright kept the bottom of the seventh alive for the Yankees. Russell Martin made them pay when he hit a two-run home run to draw the Yankees to within one. In the eighth inning, the Yanks got to Niese again, as Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez came up with clutch RBI singles to give them the 4-3 lead. In came Soriano in the ninth, who had yet to blow a save this season. However, that ended quickly as Lucas Duda and Ike Davis hit back-to-back doubles to tie the score up at four. In the bottom of the ninth, Martin was the first batter up for the Yankees. Facing a full count, he connected on a walk-off home run to left, as the Yankees completed the sweep with a dramatic 5-4 victory.

The Yankees are really starting to heat up. This team looks completely different from the ball club that was playing just a few weeks ago. The starting staff is looking more stable from top to bottom. The Bronx Bombers loved the long ball as always, hitting eight homers in the series. However, more importantly, they came up with clutch hits with RISP, something they had struggled with earlier in this season. The Yankees are beginning to look like a dangerous team. The Mets will be disappointed by getting swept, but they look to keep going. They have overachieved to get to this point already, so they don't have anything to lose. They will look to rebound when they take the field again Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. It was another excellent Subway Series, full of stellar moments. It is truly one of the highlights of every baseball season.

Jordany Valdespin's Incredible First Major League Hit

Photo Credit: Howard Smith/US Presswire

Never heard of Jordany Valdespin? You aren't alone. The 24 year-old from the Dominican Republic had only had six at-bats as a major leaguer coming into tonight. Valdespin was called up from the minors to help fill out the New York Mets bench following an injury to shortstop Ruben Tejada. The youngster watched as the game against the Philadelphia Phillies played out. It was the top of the ninth, two baserunners on for the Mets, and with the score tied at two, when Valdespin got some unexpected news. He was being called on to pinch hit for relief pitcher Tim Byrdak. The Mets believed in the rookie. They thought he could come with the big hit off Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon.

Valdespin was thrilled about his opportunity. He explained after the game, "It was a great moment for me. He's one of the best closers in the big leagues. They called me last night and told me to be ready." Looking simply for a hit, Valdespin found a pitch hanging over the plate from Papelbon. His swing made full contact as he connected for a three-run home run. Valdespin's first major league hit turned out to be the game winner, and he received the post-game pie in the face to prove it. Oh and by the way, as if there wasn't enough pressure on him to make this impressive, this game was in Philadelphia and nationally televised on ESPN.

This is truly a memorable night for Valdespin to say the least. His home run won the Mets the game, and his teammates rewarded him by showering him in whatever they could find. Valdespin couldn't have been more pleased. After the game, he told reporters, "Just excited because -- you know -- first hit in the big leagues. It's exciting. I'm thinking, 'Giving the chance to my team to win.'" That's exactly what he did, and manager Terry Collins is rewarding him with his previously promised start at shortstop tomorrow. Collins is excited about Valdespin's talent. In reference to this, he commented, "He is an extremely talented young player. So we're going to run him out there tomorrow. You know, he hasn't played shortstop, but he's just so athletic that I know he'll handle himself great." Jordany Valdespin's career is off to a thrilling start. With the support of his manager and teammates, it will be exciting to watch his development this season and for years to come.

The Kid Will Be Remembered For a Very Long Time

Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter will always be remembered for his enthusiasm, love for the game, and constant smile. This earned him his nickname as "The Kid." Carter passed away today at age 57 following a battle with brain cancer. Carter was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003, capping off a 19-year career in the majors. He was an 11-time All Star (two All Star Game MVPs) and finished with a .262 average, 324 home runs, and 1,225 RBIs. Carter began his career with the Montreal Expos and led them to their only playoff berth as a franchise. He was one of the most durable and consistent catchers ever to play the game.

The Kid will always be remembered most for his clutch play for the New York Mets in the 1986 World Series. In Game 4, he homered twice over the Green Monster at Fenway. Then, in Game 6, the Mets were down to their final out with Carter coming to the plate. No one was on and they trailed 5-3 in the bottom of the 10th inning. He stated afterwards, "I wasn't going to make the last out of the World Series." He delivered a single to left field. That started a rally that is now considered one of the greatest in baseball history. In Game 7, he also drove in the tying run in a game that helped the Mets win their most recent World Series championship. Overall, he totaled nine RBIs in the Series. That mark has only been matched once since. This World Series was clearly the climax of Carter's career.

But more than anything Carter did on the field, he will be remembered for his passion and the exuberance he displayed game after game. He did come up with some clutch plays in his career, but what will be remembered is how much he loved the game. Carter's bronze plaque in Cooperstown displays The Kid's classic toothy grin. I also believe it summarizes his life as well as anyone could. It reads, "An exuberant on-field general with a signature smile who was known for clutch hitting and rock-solid defense over 19 seasons." The Kid will always be remembered as just that, a kid who simply loved the game and couldn't help but show it.