So if you had not heard by now, RA Dickey took the time to write a farewell message to the Mets fanbase recently. Being a humble and classy man, he was met with emotional goodbyes and people wishing him well. You would be hard pressed to find any fan out there had a negative opinion of Dickey. I have had some time to think about the whole thing…and I have come to a conclusion on what to say on the matter: Forget you, RA Dickey.
Yes, I said forget you, RA Dickey. Forget your Cy Young award and your 20-win season. Forget your impressive vocabulary and your chuckle-worthy last name. Never mind that for the first time in years, since Mike Piazza, I found myself cheering for the name on the back of the jersey as much as the one on the front. And never mind that your farewell message found a way to make me feel like I was actually part of the reason you were successful in New York City because I was a fan.
See, I know better. I know that all baseball players are only in it for the money and there cannot possibly be an emotional attachment. It is inconceivable that someone actually would have wanted to stay in New York and play for the Mets. No one dreams about something like that…especially not me. Nope, nobody here has been dreaming about that since childhood…
But, I digress. I must have the right attitude here…D’Arnaud and Syndergaard will help me forget, and the Mets organization may have already forgotten that you spent 2012 with them. You should be forgotten, RA Dickey, because you are long gone by now. The three years you spent in NY will be omitted from my mind soon.
I need to forget that your story reminded me of dreams that I had long given up on. Dreams that I had believed with absolutely certainty were impossible because I thought I knew the workings of the world. Yet, in front of me, pitched a man who weakened my cynicism and gave me hope for humanity once again. I will dismiss the effect you have had on me, and the entire fanbase, because nobody can fill those shoes.
The likelihood is that you will never even catch wind of the existence of this post. But maybe one day, I will get the chance to fulfill one of those impossible dreams and meet you. I will shake your hand and say, “Thank you, stranger.”
Because by then, I will forget you.
It is for the best, though. RA Dickey, you need to be forgotten…so I never remember what we once had. Goodbye, Robert Allen Dickey, and may all your future endeavors be successful.
