Jun
14
2012

RA Dickey – From Journeyman to “The Man”

An article by Robert Patterson

Professional sports, especially baseball, have a way of sensationalizing the efforts of millionaires. These folks are after all only human, but even still there are times when things just seem too good to be true. Take for instance the career path of RA Dickey. I would call his time with the Mets a resurgence, but that would give the impression that Dickey has done this before, when in fact he has never come close. Drafted more than sixteen years ago by the Texas Rangers, Dickey’s path to stardom is as unorthodox as the 37 year old knuckleballer himself.

Many of you know the origin of Dickey’s life story. A first round selection out of the University of Tennessee, he was set for a big pay day, having agreed to a signing bonus of more than $800,000. That was until a photo on the front of Sports Illustrated alerted the Rangers medical staff to an..abnormality if you will, in RA’s right arm. That abnormality was the lack of an ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his elbow, which greatly impacted his suspected ceiling as a professional pitcher. The discovery not only cost him significant money, reducing signing bonus to only $75,000, but it also sent his once promising pitching career into a tailspin.

The next ten plus years of Dickey’s career were less than inspiring. He did not crack the Major League lineup in Texas until 2001, and ultimately spent more time pitching out of the bullpen than the starting rotation. That was until 2006 when he was advised that the knuckleball might be his only path to success at the big league level. And so he practiced his new craft, eventually moving on from the Rangers and pitching a year each in Seattle and Minnesota. Again, in both cases seeing more time out of the bullpen and having disappointing levels of success. It wasn’t until 2010 that then Mets General Manager, Omar Minaya, took a flyer on the aged hurler.

Dickey didn’t find his way into the Mets rotation until mid-May of 2010 immediately winning his first six decisions, but since then he hasn’t looked back. Dickey’s 11-9 contribution that year earned him the first guaranteed multi-year deal of his life, keeping the journeyman in Queens for the foreseeable future. Last season witnessed Dickey pitch far better than his 8-13 record would indicate, often falling victim to poor defense and even poorer run support. This season though, he has had no such tough luck.

Dickey’s rise to stardom has as much to do with his persona off the field, as it does with his performance on it. The well educated, well-spoken “veteran” has connected with multiple portions of the fan base, whether it be through his journey into the realm of twitter or his outspoken love of Star Wars. Then there is his tell all book this spring detailing everything from childhood sexual abuse, to steroid use in the Texas Rangers clubhouse. Dickey, despite being one of those aforementioned millionaires, comes off as much like you and I as anyone else in baseball. He doesn’t raise himself up above his teammates, or even his fans, making him that much more loveable.

Fast forward to last night. A dominant complete game one hitter in which Dickey broke Jerry Koosman’s scoreless innings streak, with 32 2/3′s of his own and it appears that Dickey has finally arrived. Tied for first in the Majors with ten wins, Dickey not only deserves a spot on the all-star team, he should be in discussion to start the game. Dickey hasn’t lost a decision since April 18th, and has gone at least seven innings in his last five starts (all wins). In all likelihood, as much a surprise to himself as it is to us, RA Dickey has turned into an inspiration. After a decade and a half of professional disappointment and rejection, RA Dickey has finally found his path and his home. Yes, sports fans, RA Dickey is officially “The Man” in Queens.

Follow me on Twitter at @RobPatterson83

About the Author: Rob Patterson

Ultimately, I owe nearly thirty years of Mets related torture to my mother, who is the reason I became a fan. I was too young to remember the 86 run, but hope to see one I'll be able to recall much sooner than later. I enjoy writing about the team and welcome your feedback on my posts. Oh..and I am not with 28!

18 Comments + Add Comment

jessep June 14, 2012 at 9:38 am

nice job.

RA by the way is exactly why GM’s around the sport sign guys to minor league deals. Especially guys who had potential and never reached it.

Great job by the pro scouting team and Minaya on taking a flyer on him. I don’t think there is any way they really could have known it’d go this well, (nobody could have) but I hope Dickey is in a Mets uniform for the next 5+ years.
- Alex68 June 14, 2012 at 9:53 am
  
  Great job by the pro scouting team and Minaya on taking a flyer on him”
  
  Yep, same goes to the pro scouting team and sandy for their AWESOME job in finding quintanilla, hefner and chris young….
  - jessep June 14, 2012 at 9:58 am
    
    See what you did there? You turned this into something it doesn’t need to be because you’re obsessed.
  - srt June 14, 2012 at 9:59 am
    
    All 3 of which has provided needed depth given the injuries. And in the case of CY, replacing Pelf in the starting rotation.
jessep June 14, 2012 at 9:52 am

By the way, you can lock Dickey up as an All-Star now officially. There’s no way he doesn’t make the team. So that means you have Wright and Dickey plus Terry. Is Johan next, tough call… lots of good pitchers out there.

The only question with Dickey now is, will he be the starter? I think Cain is the starter right now followed by Dickey but I do think there is a chance LaRussa rewards a guy like Lance Lynn or takes the Strasburg bait.
- Metsie June 14, 2012 at 12:39 pm
  
  It will be difficult to get both on the team…
  Remember there are restrictions put on how many games between their last start before they can be selected.
  
  Not sure how the rotation plays out but one or the other will probably not be eligible.
  
  And quite Honestly I’m not so sure I want to see them pitch in one unless it falls on thier regular day to pitch. We have not had much luck with guys who were hot and make it into the ASG in the second half as it seems they cool off after that!
  - jessep June 14, 2012 at 12:53 pm
    
    In terms of days of rest, both are on pace to be fine for the AS Game. There will be 3 regular games played by the Mets after Dickey’s final 1st half start and 2 for Johan.
    
    Which gives Dickey 4 days of rest and Johan 3.
    - Metsie June 14, 2012 at 1:05 pm
      
      I thought they could not select a pitcher unless he last pitched 5 days before the ASG?
      
      Ok I found it…If they pitch the Sunday before the ASG they can not pitch but are called All-Stars.
      - jessep June 14, 2012 at 1:11 pm
        
        yah there ya go… So as of now I believe Niese is scheduled for that last Sunday game.
        
        I think Johan has to get some Ws to have a change though. Just too many pitchers out there…
        
        As of now the starting spot is between Cain, Dickey, Strasburg and Lynn. Their last 4 starts will play a huge deciding factor.
        
        So right there you already have 4 pitchers on the team and you need to find space for:
        
        Capuano, Gio
        
        Then guys like Hamels, Greinke, Kershaw, and James McDonald all likely have a better ASG resume than Johan.
        
        Metsie June 14, 2012 at 1:41 pm
        
        Well if I had to choose who I would rather pitch in the ASGbetween Dickey and Santana, Dickey wins hands down!
        Aside from some freak occurrance he is less likey to suffer any injury or have the lack of time off affect him For this year I would prefer Santana gets all the rest he is due and not be forced to do anything extra especially for an exhibition.
srt June 14, 2012 at 9:56 am

I, for one, am so glad ‘Omar Minaya, took a flyer on the aged hurler’.
- Alex68 June 14, 2012 at 9:58 am
  
  SRT, one thing i must say, i did not see dickey being this good with this, give credit to omar and co, but you also put the “extension” factor in it, maybe he’s pitching this way trying to lock up a contract extension, hope i am wrong but it seems the norm for players to overachieve in walk off/contract extension years…
  With that being said, me and i am sure a lot of us are glad to see this guy doing well for us…
  - srt June 14, 2012 at 10:02 am
    
    Truthfully, the contract extension didn’t even occur to me. Much like Wright, team has an option on RA for next year so technically it’s not a ‘walk’ year for RA.
    
    In the case of Dickey, I’m thinking it has more to do with him just getting much more comfortable with his knuckle ball and now adding speeds to it as well.
    
    And you’re right….what Met fan doesn’t love RA Dickey?
    - USMF June 14, 2012 at 10:48 am
      
      I don’t think the contract thing has anything to do with what he’s doing now.
      
      If you look at what he’s doing and how he’s doing it, he hasn’t changed all that much since he first came up. Yes, his command is better, but it’s not like we haven’t seen glimpses of this type of performances the past two seasons. The surprising thing is, he hasn’t had many bad, or even mediocre starts this year. Take away this bad start in Atlanta and two average 6inning 3run starts and he’s been fantastic.
      
      I personally think that of of the biggest factors in RAD’s success this year has been the great weather we’ve seen. We know that rain is RAD kryptonite, but I think it’s a pretty fair to assume that cold weather makes it hard to grid that knuckler properly. Last year when RAD started slow, we had some pretty cool weather, but this year the weather has been pretty great. I think great weather helps RAD in each individual start, but also has help RAD find and keep his rhythm.
      - srt June 14, 2012 at 10:51 am
        
        Agree with you on the weather affecting his knuckle ball. The one bad start he had this year was in a rainy type day.
        The slow start he got off to last year might be attributed to a rainy and cold type spring we had last year.
Mack Ade June 14, 2012 at 10:07 am

Rob, I was there the day he pitched his first warmups on the first day of pitchers/catchers… a bunch of us, including Rubin, we’re laughing at his mechanics and asking each other who the hell was that?

We all agreed he would be the first cut out of camp.
Tricia June 14, 2012 at 10:23 am

It’s a pretty cool progression. 1. Journeyman, 2. The Man!, 3. 2012 Cy Young

Those are my kind of numbers!
Metsie June 14, 2012 at 12:48 pm

You know what the most exciting thing is watching Dickey?
It isn’t all the K’s 1 Hitters and potential Perfect games….

It’s watching a pitcher EVOLVE right before your eyes!
Next time one comes up watch a game from Dickey two years ago…
Then something from last year…
Then re-watch last night’s game!

You would almost swear it was three different pitchers!

This guy is PERFECTING the Knuckleball in a way no one else has!
And he is the personification that proves if you pitch with your head you don’t need all the STUFF and VELOCITY that seems to be the only basis anyone gets drafted for these days.
Knowing HOW to pitch is better than knowing 4 or 5 pitches!

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