METS 101

With the 2012 season now behind us, Mets 101 continues to break down the New York Mets by each position. Today's focus is the starting pitching staff. Led by All-Star and eventual Cy Young award winner R.A. Dickey, the starting rotation began to come together as a strength of the Metropolitans.

R.A. Dickey

The National League Cy Young award winner, nobody did it better than Dickey in 2012. Tossing an unbelievable 5 complete games with three shutouts and striking out 230 batters in 233 2/3 innings, you couldn't ask the knuckler for anything more than 20-6 with a 2.73 ERA.

Grade: A+

Jonathon Niese

Niese improved by leaps and bounds in his third season as a Met, posting a career-high 13 wins and a career-low 3.40 ERA. Niese also fanned 155 batters in 190 1/3 innings.

Grade: B

Matt Harvey

The rookie phenom burst onto the scene midway through 2012 and immediately showed signs of promise. While he couldn't buy run support and threw a lot of pitches, Harvey still struck out 70 in just 59 1/3 innings, en route to a 3-5 record and 2.73 ERA.

Grade: B+

Dillon Gee

Gee's second full big league season was derailed by injury, as he developed blood clots in his arm and was shut down at the All-Star break. While inconsisent at times, Gee still went at least five innings in each of his 17 starts, with a 6-7 record and a 4.10 ERA. He'll be back in 2013 if all goes will with rehab.

Grade: C+

Johan Santana

Johan threw the first no-hitter in Met history on June 1, which at the time brought his record to 3-2 with a 2.38 ERA. Santana's season tanked when the Mets did, as he lost his last 5 starts of the season, all after July 1. By mid-August, Santana was back on the DL and done for the season at 6-9, 4.85.

Grade: INC

The Callups

The seemingly constant injuries endured by the Met staff led the a slew of callups from AAA Buffalo, as we got looks at a bunch of guys who we may not see ever again in the future. 2012 was the first opportunity for Jeremy Hefner (4-7, 5.09), Collin McHugh (0-4, 7.59), Chris Schwinden (0-1, 12.46) and Jeurys Familia (0-0, 5.84). It was also another look for others like Jenrry Mejia (1-2, 5.63) and a last chance for Chris Young (4-9, 4.15) and Miguel Batista (1-3, 4.82).

Grade D 

Tags: Baseball, Chris Young, Dillon Gee, Johan Santana, Jonathon Niese, Matt Harvey, MLB, New York, New York Mets, R.A. Dickey

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