8
2012
Mets Could Have Dickey Signed Before End Of This Month
An article by 
Andy McCullough of The Star-Ledger added some more depth to what R.A. Dickey had to say about his contract talks, the Mets, and the direction of the team.
“He’s convinced me,” Dickey said before being honored by the ALS Association Greater New York Chapter at the New York Marriott Marquis. “I think the Mets are moving in the right direction, that’s for sure. I certainly want to be part of that solution.”
One person with knowledge of the discussions indicated there could be a resolution before the month ends. The person requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of negotiations. The necessary terms for a deal were described as a “moving target.” A one-year extension, for example, would cost more per season than a three-year extension.One comparable contract that’s been discussed belongs to White Sox starter Jake Peavy. Chicago granted Peavy an extension worth $29 million for 2013 and 2014. It is unclear if the Mets would spend as much on Dickey, who turns 38 next month.
During the past three seasons, Peavy posted a 4.07 ERA in 437⅔ innings. In that same time frame, Dickey posted a 2.95 ERA in 616 2/3 innings.
The comparison to Peavy is a fair one, but I would value Dickey much more than him. I think the White Sox overpaid for Peavy and using him as a comparison would only lead to the Mets doing the same with Dickey. Unfortunately that’s how things work in baseball.
If I had to guess, a two year deal could fetch Dickey $34 million, with a three year deal guaranteeing him a little less annually but still a nice chunk of change at $45 million.
It’s clear that Dickey wants to remain with the team, and I don’t know what Alderson told him, but Dickey is now convinced the Mets have ”a very intentional plan” and believes the Mets are heading in the right direction and that they will be “competitive very quickly”.
I’m still skeptical, so I’m going to wait and see what this hot stove season has in store for us.
Original Post 11/7 1:00 PM
According to Marc Carig of Newsday, R.A. Dickey told him that contract talks have progressed between him and the Mets.
Dickey told him that he feels the organization is heading in the right direction. You may recall was skeptical of the team’s direction last month and said he wanted to know what the plan was before he negotiates an extension. Dickey also said that he considered himself and Wright “a package deal”.
This is probably the first real piece of news from either the Mets or Dickey regarding any extension talks and how those negotiations are progressing. By that I mean it’s not from some unnamed team source.
It actually changes my entire stance on the situation as I’ve been of the belief that Dickey would be traded this offseason. Now I’m not so sure.
I love Dickey and I’d want nothing better than for him to be our Opening Day pitcher next season. He gave us the courtesy of several interviews since joining the Mets, including an exclusive interview at the MLB Fan Cave this summer.
The way I figured things was that we were rebuilding and with his value at an all-time high Dickey was as good as gone for a package of top prospects.
I have absolutely no idea what this front office is doing anymore. None.
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
I'm a lifelong Mets fan who loves writing and talking about the Amazins' 24/7. From the Miracle in 1969 to the magic of 1986, and even the near misses in '73 and '00, I've experienced it all - the highs and the lows. I started Mets Merized Online in 2005 to feed my addiction. Follow me on Twitter @metsmerized.
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Andy McCullough has some more quotes from Dickey as well.
http://www.nj.com/mets/index.ssf/2012/11/ra_dickey_convinced_his_future.html
Thanks, I thought this stood out…
“Sandy’s got a very intentional plan, that he’s been disciplined to try to implement,” Dickey said. “And hopefully the pieces fall in place, and we’re competitive very quickly.
From his mouth to God’s ears.
Your welcome Joe D. While I agree with you on the “From his mouth to God’s ears.” I am keeping this in the context of when it is being said which is midst contract talks so I am not reading much into this other than noting that he said during the season he wanted to know the direction the team was going and based on these quotes it seems he has had some answers to that.
Actually because I have so much respect for R.A.’s honesty I have to believe he is quite sincere and what he said was indeed not due to he and the Mets being in contract negotiations at this time. If part of his remarks were made to create some sort of additional public pressure on the Mets for his own self-interest then there goes a bit of my faith in one of my few bastions of integrity.
When it comes to R.A., I admit I could be looking through rose-colored glasses.
I would say Dickey is correct. The Mets arent as far away from competing as they appear. Presuming they lock up Wright, their infield is set for a number of years. Sure people can make the case to alter some pieces, but the entire product is fairly decent at the major league level and can succeed. Their starting staff over the next few years, no matter what the configuration, is pretty good. If the prospects, Harvey and Wheeler, pan out, they are going to have a pretty good starting 5 for years to come.
The Mets areas of deficiency are also fairly easy to upgrade; at least two of them. Catching, since theirs are so bad, can be upgraded with just a solid defensive-minded receiver. While not ideal, it will improve the team and the lack of offense can be tolerated if made up elsewhere. The BP can be turned easily since relievers are so temperamental from year to year. While the Mets have failed the last 5 years, going with a bunch of young arms might be the recipe. It is the one place where lightening can be captured without great difficulty.
As for the final area, the OF, that is a problem. This is the one area where no clear path seems to show itself. If Kirk and Duda are still high on the Mets list as having the ability to succeed at this level, then they are in decent shape. However, that is a very risky path to follow since we all know they havent shown the ability thus far to be successful to an acceptable degree. The Mets might get lucky with one (or Den Dekker) but not both. This leaves them with the need of 2 OFs one which most likely will be to offer some RH power. Is that available, where can they get it? Not sure at this point.
While I am one who does believe the Mets are looking at 2014 before truly being competitive, I dont think it is wise to discount 2013 yet. There are a lot of what ifs that need to happen positively but we all know it happens every year. The Mets have a few stars (Wright, Santana, Dickey, and Ike in the making), some good players (Tejada, Murphy, Niese), and a number of question marks. What they need is their stars to be stars, the good players to get a little better, and a couple of the question marks to surprise. If this happens, you have at least a 10 game turnaround over last year. If not, it will be another empty August and September.
According to Ken Rosenthal and his Sources he states on twitter:
“Sources: #Mets showing little interest in signing Dickey to extension, discussing him in trades, as @Joelsherman1 reported.”
https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/266592723119788032
I said the same over at TRDM. I Have No idea How to take his quotes… posturing is normal in FA but Dickey isn’t normal. I like Joe Have No idea.
Joe,
I know you are not Sandy’s biggest fan. But let’s actually see what he can do over the next 2 off seasons. This was the plan all along. No need to pull a Steve Phillips or Omar Minaya and sign an over priced free agent that doesn’t produce. See Bay, Castillo, and Perez.
I have a feeling they’re making a big mistake not exploring a market for him first before locking him up.
How do you know they aren’t?
Because it’s the Mets. They cave to stuff like this. Didn’t they say bringing them back was a PR move as well as a baseball move? We just got rid of their last PR move today.
I recall Sandy saying he would be working in parallel; negotiating with Dickey while assessing his trade value. I don’t remember which interview it was but I remember he said that.
He did? Well, he better strike while the iron is hot. The main destinations I see for Dickey are Texas and Tampa and a big time trade can happen even more if Dickey wins the Cy Young next week.
It occurred to me that this is the best time to trade David Price, too. I wonder if there’s ever been an offseason in which both reigning Cys were traded (provided they both win).
I’ve read several rumors of Price to Toronto. Valid or not, it probably does make sense to shop/trade Price, if the Rays are looking to stock up on picks and keep the Salary low. Imagine what this team could be if they moved elsewhere and could draw some fans? If they moved to Puerto Rico, this team would be able to sustain a 90-100 mil payroll, easy.
Hitman, I think maybe you and I discussed this before but I see almost 0 added value by Dickey winning the CY Young and in fact might work against the Mets trading him. An opposing GM isn’t gonna care too much about the CY Young award because they are using their own metrics. Where it might come into play would be if they expected a ticket boost because he was CY.
EVERY GM should do that, it’s great for contract negotiations. Especially for a guy who doesn’t have a no trade clause. Hey, wanna stay here then take something decent. Otherwise head to a bandbox for a year.
I know where you’re coming from, and I agree. An example is what happened in the NBA with James Harden. The Thunder wanted to give him an extension and a limited time to either agree to terms or not. When they couldn’t, they quickly traded him to Houston. Same precedent should be set.
Have to admit R.A.’s comments come as a complete surprise to me. Since I have always said he is honest and sincere in what he says I’m not going to question them now. It seems he truly believes the team is headed in the right direction for if he didn’t, he wouldn’t sugar coat things.
Have to chuckle a bit. Those who questioned Dickey’s objectivity (when he said the team believed in itself and the front office not having faith in them was hard to accept) will now have to say that is not really the case after all. And those of us who thought he was right at the time cannot question his judgement now.
Dickey on a 3-4 year contract is much more tradeable than Wright on a 7 year contract
I would agree with that. The Mets are going to hose themselves with Wrights deal. He is going to get the money and this is a time when I wish the Wilpon’s would get cheap.
I think Dickey is staying. Wright? I don’t know.
Given what Dickey said about being a “package deal”, it must be one hell of a plan if he’s OK with trading Wright.
I seriously doubt Wright is going anywhere. The Wilpon’s will open the checkbook to keep him.
And when they do it, it’ll turn out to be the dumbest move they ever made. I just dont want to see/hear the whining that comes afterwards. They have to trade either one or both of them to replenish the roster.
I agree. The Wright contract is going to be one of those that becomes a bad contract the second it is signed (if the numbers/years mentioned are accurate).
I’m reading that Dickey wants 5 years. TRADE HIM NOW!
Dickey sounded like he was on his way out after the season ended. He sounded almost angry. This is a different Dickey and he’d done an about-face. Looks like he’ll be back which is a good thing.
Trade this guy as soon as possible… Him and wright… Get this done NOW…
According to Ken Rosenthal and his Sources he states on twitter:
“Sources: #Mets showing little interest in signing Dickey to extension, discussing him in trades, as @Joelsherman1 reported.”
https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/266592723119788032
The question is do you trust Sandy & co. to pull this trade off and get a good return or are we looking at another Pagan for Torres,Ramirez deal….smh….we are doomed
Leroy, don’t trust the guy either way, but to have him overpay for dickey i rather take my chances on a prospect and go from there.. We are on rebuilding mode, it’s no longer a secret, go get prospects and build for 2014 and up… Dickey migth get paid and become a bum, kinda like he was before being good with us, move on already from him and wright, give the keys to the franchise to Harvey and Ike (Didn’t get promoted to the minors and still hit over 30 HR) Davis…
I totally agree in regards to trading Dickey for pieces. Dickey needs to be on a win now team we are years maybe even a decade away from that and the rate Sandy is going there is no hope in sight.
I just get scared sheeetless when Sandy is the guy doing the wheeling and dealing. The guy doesnt exactly instill confidence in you, you know.
Well this is very good news. I thought Dickey was a goner too. If Dickey stays that means we could trade a different pitcher. Maybe cerrone is on to something with the Niese for upton trade? with RA in the fold that may not be such a bad thing.
2013 rotation of dickey, santana, harvey gee and wheeler in midseason or maybe to start the season.
Young stud in RF and maybe a prospect or 2