New York Mets Series Preview vs. Toronto Blue Jays June 15th-18th

Former Farmhands Now Major League Producers

Jun 9, 2015; New York City, NY, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard (34) delivers a pitch against the San Francisco Giants during the first inning of a baseball game at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

In that trade between the Mets and Blue Jays prior to the 2013 season, the Mets received a strong package that included Travis d’Arnaud and Noah Syndergaard. You might have heard of them, as Syndergaard is one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball, and d’Arnaud has begun living up to the potential he showed as a top catching prospect, carried by his abilities at the plate.

Both players are now a part of the major league team with the Mets, and could be the battery for the first game of the series. Syndergaard had his start pushed back Sunday in favor of Dillon Gee, and now gets to start against his former team. He has flashed the potential that made him one of the top prospects in the game, as he has plus stuff.

While he has ran into a little trouble in the early going, he hasn’t had the easiest matchups going up against strong lineups such as the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs. The Blue Jays will present a similar hurdle, but as his old team Syndergaard will undoubtedly want to show them what they are missing out on when they traded him as part of the package for Dickey.

As for d’Arnaud, he has been arguably the most steady producer in the Mets lineup this season. In his third season with the major league club, d’Arnaud is truly breaking out. He suffered a broken pinkie that sidelined him for about eight weeks, but when he has been in the lineup he has hit the ball.

He is slashing .310/.345/.552 in 58 at-bats, hitting three home runs with 14 RBI. His return from the DL was a huge boost for the Mets as they have one of their run producers back in the lineup. The numbers he has the potential to put up as a catcher gives the Mets a unique edge over many teams they face off with, as catcher normally isn’t a spot you count on for big production.

The Mets would have been happy getting either one in a package for Dickey, but the fact they got both means they easily won the trade. They are hoping each of them show the Blue Jays what they missed out on this week.

Next: Future Trade Partners?