Josh Thole Appreciation Thread

[Gary]

Josh Thole agrees to minors deal with d-backs

[BTS]

f*** yes.

[Orgfiller]

This is great news. Now Navarro needs to f*** off and sign elsewhere so my dreams will come true.

[jaysfan2014]

Thank goodness the Jays never have to give him ABs again especially with Dickey gone to Atlanta..

[Angrioter]

Jays best move this offseason

[Ehjays]

Atlanta FO showing they are ok with Dickey but not his sidekick

[Governator]

Why wouldn't Atlanta have signed him for insurance to a minor league deal? Maybe he's sick of catching the knuckleball.

[glory]

I'm not comfortable until Navarro signs somewhere else. I'm dreading his return. Thole was a non factor.

[Nafro]

Maybe Atlanta saw how that worked for the Jays. Its bad enough in the AL having a dead roster spot, for a mediocre pitcher. It would be death in the NL, with the need for the bench.

[bones10]

Bye Felicia

[KingKat]

Why wouldn't Atlanta have signed him for insurance to a minor league deal? Maybe he's sick of catching the knuckleball.

 

Frankly, I think the Braves are crazy to not have signed Thole as insurance. I mean sure it could work out fine but why not have a plan B in case it doesn't? Reminds me of when the Red Sox thought they didn't need Doug Mirabelli and then had to go back to the Padres and ask for him back.

[Spanky__99]

Frankly, I think the Braves are crazy to not have signed Thole as insurance. I mean sure it could work out fine but why not have a plan B in case it doesn't? Reminds me of when the Red Sox thought they didn't need Doug Mirabelli and then had to go back to the Padres and ask for him back.

 

Agreed, this will likely happen again.

[Bobthe4th]

Frankly, I think the Braves are crazy to not have signed Thole as insurance. I mean sure it could work out fine but why not have a plan B in case it doesn't? Reminds me of when the Red Sox thought they didn't need Doug Mirabelli and then had to go back to the Padres and ask for him back.

 

When we had Thole we accepted his was useless for anything else, but it was arguably a price worth paying to protect Martin. The Braves first choice catcher is only Tyler Flowers. Flowers has also said he'd be happy to catch the knuckleball:

 

Dickey says he doesn't need a personal catcher

[TholesWeirdEye]

http://cdn4.gurl.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Dawson_Crying.gif

[rydermike]

I think not signing him to a minors deal is a mistake for Atlanta. If Flowers can do the job and you don't need Thole, that's Option #1. But look at us, when we brought in Dickey; we signed/acquired 3! catchers - Thole, Nickeas, Blanco. Even last year when Martin did the job, we decided it wasn't the best for the team and brought Thole in September + this season. It's one thing to have a black hole taking up a roster spot for under a million, but if Flowers or whoever they get as a back up can't do it, then basically Dickey's $8 million becomes a waste - the extra benefit you get from a non-Thole hitter is lost due to the plethora of passed balls. Hopefully, Flowers does a good job.