TORONTO – R.A. Dickey believes Russ Martin has all the ability needed to handle his knuckleball and is looking forward to working with the new Toronto Blue Jays catcher.
“Nothing is going to replace time spent together, and so I think from the get-go, we’re probably going to be spending a lot of time on the side, bullpens, playing catch so that he can get a feel for what that pitch does and see if he feels like it’s something he can do every day that I pitch, that’s 34 starts,” the right-hander said Friday while helping launch the club’s winter tour.
“I’ve thrown 75 or 80 percent of my starts since 2010 to Josh Thole, and I love him like a brother, but to have a guy that can step in and do it as well is a nice commodity.”
Martin, speaking last week at Baseball Canada’s annual awards banquet, said he expects to be behind the plate when Dickey starts and saw no reason why he wouldn’t be able to catch the knuckleballer.
His success on that front would create lots more roster flexibility for the Blue Jays, who have carried Thole the past two seasons to primarily catch Dickey but may need to fit Dioner Navarro, displaced as starter by Martin, on the roster if a suitable trade isn’t found.
Thole has caught 121 of the knuckleballer’s 162 big-league games since 2010 and all but 13 of his starts for the Blue Jays.
Asked about the impact of having a new catcher on his own preparation, Dickey replied, “I wouldn’t say it’s frustrating, it just requires intentional communication and consistent communication.”
“When I’m with Josh now, he doesn’t even have to put down a sign, I can go a whole game without him flashing one sign. That’s remarkable,” he added. “To get to that place with another person is going to be a real challenge, but it’s not that it can’t be done. Russell just needs to get repetitions. He’s an incredible athlete, and so guys that are good athletes who have incredible hand-eye co-ordination, which he possesses, usually have not an easy time, but a better chance of doing it well.”
Martin’s only experience with a knuckleball pitcher came in 2000-10, with 13.2 innings spread over seven Charlie Haeger appearances while with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Dickey, 40, went 14-13 with a 3.71 ERA in 34 starts over 215.2 innings last year.
