Simmer Down Now About Josh Thole

I'm in full agreement with the universal head scratching going on in Mets fandom right now at the seemingly ridiculous amount of catchers the Mets are taking. The way the Mets are feeding on catchers is like the green room in the tryouts for The Biggest Loser.


But the one thing I take issue with is the constant reference to the fact that the Mets have Josh Thole and therefore shouldn't get an upgrade at catcher.

May I remind you of a certain fellow by the name of Daniel Murphy? Remember he came up, much like Thole, hit well and played well in September and then every Mets fan and front office employee was crowning him the second coming of Pete Rose. Look where that got us.

Let's not anoint Josh Thole the next best catcher in the world quite yet. Yes, he played well in September in pretty much meaningless games. Sure he's doing ok in winter league ball. But if you think that Thole will be a contributor to the Mets next season on an everyday basis, you're kidding yourself.

Don't rush this kid. Let him spend another season in the minors and look at potentially calling him up if needed midseason/September. He might be the future catcher for this team, but Mets fans need to simmer down before we have another Murphy-esque disappointment on our hands.

Brian Schneider is a Reincarnated Charlie O'Brien

I don't think there was a Mets player I disliked more growing up than Charlie O'Brien. Ok, maybe Doug Sisk, Don Aase and Kevin McReynolds after 1988, but O'Brien is definitely in the top 5.

I couldn't understand how a major league baseball player could bat under .200 and be completely worthless at the plate. Every time O'Brien would get up with runners on base, it was an automatic out or a double play. How on earth did a guy like this get to play every day?

Fast forward 18 years and I give you Brian Schneider.

Schneider has become the same liability that O'Brien was back in the early 90's. Schneider is a pretty good defensive catcher, but let's not fool ourselves into thinking his woes at the plate are covered because he's got an arm like Yadier Molina. Schneider is a serviceable defensive catcher who calls a good game, but his presence in the lineup is as fearsome as Oliver Perez's.

In 2008, Schneider had arguably his best offensive year batting .257 with an OBP of .339, both career highs. This year Schneider is taking a step backward as his current average is a few notches below the Mendoza line at .192 and his OBP is a horrific .288.

Compare that to O'Brien's back to back years of batting .185 and .212 in '91 & '92 and you have a closer resemblance to Schneider than you may initially think.

I was one of those people that liked the Schneider pickup. For some reason I thought he was a decent hitter and a very good defensive catcher. The truth is he's a not-so-good hitter and a respectable defensive catcher. And in this lineup of mediocre bats, Schneider's ineptitude at the plate is all the more glaring.

What about Omir Santos you ask? Santos is the heir to Ramon Castro's throne. He's a guy who comes up big a few games a year and has you thinking he can be an everyday player. I think Santos is a solid backup or platoon catcher, but not a guy you can expect to deliver every game.

I'm starting to think that this off season after the Mets acquire ________ (insert really good starting pitcher here), they should start investigating a new catcher.

Mets Schneider out indefinitely with calf strain

According to ESPN.com Mets' catcher Brian Schneider is out indefinitely with a calf strain.

Fantastic. The one guy who didn't play in the WBC is now out for who knows how long. Ramon Castro is the easy choice to start the season behind the plate.

By the way the term "indefinitely" when associated with an injury makes it seem like such a tragic injury, when in fact it's merely that the doctors don't know how long it will take to heal.

While Schneider is not exactly the linchpin to the Mets offense, he was having a nice spring batting over .300 amidst talk that the Mets were shopping him in the offseason and potentially pursuing a better hitting catcher to add before opening day.

I really wanted Schneider to get off to a good start this season and put some of that talk behind him. I also think he calls a very good game and is one of the most sound defensive catchers in all of baseball.

You may not think the loss of Schneider is a big deal, but with Maine struggling, Perez being a mental patient and the unknown state that is the 5th starter, this injury may have a bigger impact than you would think.

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