Blue Jays History: 2013 trade for Cy Young winner provided hope — and not much else

When Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos traded for defending NL Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey on December 17, 2012 — exactly 12 years ago today — it seemed to make a lot of sense. Anthopoulos had just pulled off a blockbuster trade with the Miami Marlins a month earlier, and bringing in a pitcher at the top of his game to lead the Blue Jays to their first playoff berth since 1993 seemed to be an intelligent move. With fan morale was at an all-time high, Toronto was ready to march forward with Dickey as at the top of their rotation.

Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. While the Blue Jays did eventually end up breaking their 21-season postseason drought in 2015 by winning the AL East, the team's trade for Dickey ultimately aged extremely poorly.

On this day: Blue Jays acquire R.A. Dickey from Mets

The December 2012 trade involved the Blue Jays sending catcher John Buck, minor league outfielder Wuilmer Becerra, and two prospects — starter Noah Syndergaard and catcher Travis d'Arnaud — to the New York Mets, and in return, they received Dickey, catcher Josh Thole, and minor league catcher Mike Nickeas. As part of the deal, Toronto signed Dickey to a two-year, $25 million contract extension to take effect from the 2014 season, with a $12 million team option for 2016.

Joining the Blue Jays, Dickey was coming off the best season of his career. With a 20-6 record, 2.73 ERA, 139 ERA+, and the best strikeout count in MLB at 230, the right-hander had received his first All-Star selection in 2012, and won the NL Cy Young Award. Dickey appeared at the top of his game, so even though he was 37 years old and had only shown any real potential as a star over the last two to three seasons, nobody even entertained the idea that he was a rather obvious regression risk.

Dickey made his first appearance with the Blue Jays as their 2013 Opening Day starter, where he posted a loss after allowing the Cleveland Indians to put four runs and five hits on the board in six innings. He went on to have brief moments of brilliance throughout the season, throwing a shutout against the Tampa Bay Rays in June and winning a Gold Glove Award for his fielding work, but overall, Dickey's 2013 campaign was underwhelming. He finished with a 14-13 record, 4.21 ERA, and a below-average 98 ERA+.

Over the four seasons he spent in Toronto, Dickey was perfectly average. He never again posted an ERA+ above 105 and the 177 strikeouts he recorded in 2013 were the most he managed in a season, but he was a passable starter that continued to eat innings without having too much of an impact. When the Blue Jays won the AL East in 2015, the 40-year-old became the oldest player in MLB history to make his postseason debut, but despite the team exercising his option for the next year, he was left off of their playoff roster in 2016.

In addition to Dickey clearly not being the superstar the Blue Jays were hoping for, the fact that he almost exclusively threw knuckeball pitches also caused the team issues. It quickly became apparent that Thole was the only catcher on the team who could catch knuckleballers, which meant the Blue Jays had to keep him as their catcher out of necessity rather than talent.

Still, the biggest issue with the December 2012 trade was not what Toronto got — or didn't get — out of Dickey, Thole, and Nickeas (who only ever appeared in one game for the Blue Jays as a defensive replacement), but what they gave up in return.

Syndergaard established himself as an ace in New York

Syndergaard didn't make his major league debut with the Mets until May 2015, but once he got there, he was quick to make an impression. Just months after being promoted, Syndergaard started Game 3 of the 2015 World Series against the Kansas City Royals, recording 6 strikeouts to give New York its only win of the series. He finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting, and in 2016, he received his first All-Star selection, finished eighth in NL Cy Young Award voting, and 19th in NL MVP voting.

An unfortunate slew of injuries limited Syndergaard's seasons from 2017-19, and at the start of 2020, he underwent Tommy John surgery for a torn UCL in his right elbow, ruling him out of the entire pandemic-shortened season and almost all of 2021. After the 2021 season, Syndergaard rejected the Mets' qualifying offer, and signed a one-year, $21 million contract with with the Los Angeles Angels, becoming the highest per-season earner of any pitcher in franchise history.

Syndergaard's injury issues unfortunately stopped the momentum of his early years in the majors, but despite limited appearances over his final seasons in New York, he remained a fierce presence on the mound when healthy. His career never got back to his earlier peaks, and after putting together a passable 3.94 ERA between the Angels and Philadelphia Phillies in 2022, he was eventually released by the Cleveland Guardians midway through the 2023.

Trade for Dickey provided brief hope — and not much else

Despite Syndergaard's struggles at the end of his career, there's no denying he was dominant during his first few seasons in MLB, and the Blue Jays undoubtedly would've been better to have kept him in their system than traded him away for Dickey. Add in the fact that they had to tolerate Thole behind the plate and it was just a bad time in Toronto all round.

Anthopoulos' rapid bolstering of the Blue Jays' roster before the 2013 season inspired hope and excitement amongst the fan base, and seemingly proved the team was serious about getting back into contention conversations. Unfortunately, that didn't translate into wins, and Toronto had given up a young star-on-the-rise for a regression risk at the tail end of his career.