After the finale between the New York Mets and the Washington Nationals, they designated pitcher Casey Fossum for assignment.
Fossum had just pitched 2 2-3 innings against the Nationals in relief of Oliver Perez. Fossum walked three, struck out two and allowed one run to score.
To take his place on the roster, the Mets called up Ken Takahashi from Triple-A Buffalo.
The Mets signed Takahashi on March 30 after he was released by the Toronto Blue Jays.
Here’s a Q&A with Patrick Newman from NPB Tracker that I did days after the Mets signed the 40 year old pitcher:
Is Takahashi a LOOGY (Lefty One Out Guy)?
No, he was a starter last year and didn’t perform that well against lefties — .333 ba against in 126 batters faced.
Average pitch speed?
Probably high 80’s on the fastball, but I haven’t seen him this year. I believe he can reach about 91 on his fastball.
Can he perform at the major league level? / Worth it or just minor league fodder?
The odds are against him, being 40 and not having an obviously dominating pitch, but he thinks his changeup is as good as [Hideki] Okajima’s. Definitely a low-risk pickup. You can’t have too many arms, and if he proves he can get lefties out in AAA the Mets may have something.
For more on Takahashi, check out a full post about him on NPB Tracker.