While Mets fans await what the end game will be regarding the R.A. Dickey negotiations, the results could prove to be key in how it shapes the Mets’ future. One thing that I am noticing this past week is how patient, understanding, and cordial Dickey’s agent Bo McKinnis has been during this past week with the Mets on all of this. Which is not something I can say I’ve seen an agent be so public with while in the midst of negotiations.
“We have enough of a difference of opinion that if R.A. does get traded, I can’t say I would be surprised. I’m not saying that’s our first choice, but if it happens, I’m not going to be surprised. There will be no hard feelings with it, either. Certainly, if it were to happen, R.A. would like to go to a winning, successful club. But it’s just part of the business.” – Link
“It’s kind of been a slow process, but that may be a product of Mr. Wright’s deal this past week. I know that had to occupy their time significantly. But there has not been anything confrontational between Sandy and myself. And I feel as though he’s been very forthright on their side. And we have on ours.” – Link
“For me to say that [the Mets] are in an awkward spot, not knowing whether to sign him or trade him, I guess we’re similarly mixed.” – Link
“In terms of years and structure, we’re agreeable on multiple structures,” McKinnis said. “Sandy has been good about that. It’s just a matter of getting the dollars right.” – Link
“I’m not comfortable talking to dollars, but I don’t mind saying we’re doing everything on our end to be fair. I don’t think we’re being unfair, and I think Sandy is trying to do the same as well.” – Link
The other thing that seems apparent is that McKinnis & Dickey are pretty comfortable with the idea of possibly being traded by the Mets.
“As time has progressed,” McKinnis said of his client, “I think he is getting more to a peace with it.” – Link
McKinnis reflected Dickey’s own recent comments in noting his client would be amenable to a trade, going as far as to say Dickey’s “eyes light up” at the thought of potentially ending his career where it started, in Texas. – Link
“R.A. really does want to be with the Mets, but he doesn’t want to be here if being here is not the best thing for the club. If it would open more opportunities for them, we’d accept that trade.” – Link
“It really became clear to us that David Wright only knows the Mets, and so I think it would be far more devastating to him to get traded,” McKinnis said. “When I say it to R.A., yes he would be disappointed because he wants to be with the Mets. But on the other hand, using R.A.’s terminology, it would just be another step in the journey.” – Link
“He said, ‘If being part of the solution is being traded, I’m prepared for that,’ ” McKinnis said. – Link
“They somewhat have a choice to make,” McKinnis said. “Do they invest financially or are they better served going out into the trade market. We’re fine either way.” – Link
“I used the phrase with Sandy,” McKinnis said. “We’re big boys. If we end up going to another team, it’s just fine. Sandy has a job to do and we respect that. We’ll take what comes.” – Link
Personally my preference continues to be for McKinnis and the Mets to come to an agreement and sign Dickey to an extension. But if they do end up trading R.A. Dickey then I hope it’s only because their demands for something of high value in return was met.
One thing to note: Dickey set up McKinnis with his current wife. – Link
53 comments
Don O'Brien
12/11/2012-12:32am at 12:32 am (UTC -4)
R.A. Dickey is a class act. Intelligent, thoughtful, resourceful, and one of the most likeable people the Mets have ever had. I hope we keep him, but either way he will be one of my favorite players.
srt
12/11/2012-7:49am at 7:49 am (UTC -4)
Agree – well said.
Stick
12/11/2012-9:25am at 9:25 am (UTC -4)
3rds. And definitley not your normal MLB player.
srt
12/11/2012-7:51am at 7:51 am (UTC -4)
Davidoff and others can take their ‘attention getting, chatty’ Dickey comments and stick ‘em you-know-where.
For crying out loud…..there are few ball players these days that you could actually label as a role model. Dickey is one of those rare players. It’s almost like his mature attitude is too good to be true so some of these hacks make things up so they can pen an article about him that goes against the norm.
kingman 26
12/11/2012-9:23am at 9:23 am (UTC -4)
Many of them most certainly make things up.
Stick
12/11/2012-9:26am at 9:26 am (UTC -4)
If the choice is between RA and Jeffy, I am going with RA
Stick
12/11/2012-9:24am at 9:24 am (UTC -4)
what ever happened to “no comment”?
and doesn’t it seem like every simple thing with the mets ends up becoming a drawn out clown show drama? Can’t they just do things quickly to get them done, and move on to other things (and, gasp, do more than one thing at a time?)
I am becoming more and more convinced that Jeffy has had a much bigger hand in all the operations than anyone realized over a long period of time. And that much of the disfunction comes right from his office. And that is really depressing, because it negates any good vibes from any GM (and frankly, decreases the odds that a good one will ever want to come here).
So, I think my fear that J.P. is already lined up for the job comes true, and only because he works remote and won’t attempt at all to get in the way!
srt
12/11/2012-9:28am at 9:28 am (UTC -4)
I think part of it is the Mets are a NY team and there’s far more beat writer coverage here than say in Kansas City. Everyone wants to be the first to report something – and have that ‘something’ be different than what everyone else is reporting.
You know if they said ‘no comment’, that itself would be spun into some type of negative story about how the FO does business.
kingman 26
12/11/2012-9:31am at 9:31 am (UTC -4)
Again, it just all shows the place this team is at right now. Dickey has given them SO much value over the last three years while being paid a total of about $8 million.
If $5–6 million really stands between R.A. staying or going, it should be yet another firm brick in the wall of utter Met insolvency.
Considering the market out there and what others are receiving, should Dickey leave/be traded, this will clearly be viewed fairly as being the same sort of non-offer Reyes received.
Not even getting into the pitchers’ market, is R.A. worth less than Victorino?
TRS86
12/11/2012-9:48am at 9:48 am (UTC -4)
Eh, I think the Mets have the money to sign Dickey and are even fine with the inbetween of their demands. I still think the hold up is exactly what I have said all along. While they are comfortable with keeping Dickey they are open to the idea of a team overpaying in a strange market if that deal makes the team better.
Again, why not be patient?
kingman 26
12/11/2012-10:06am at 10:06 am (UTC -4)
The Mets are trying hard to lowball him, or they are not trying to sign him at all.
With the money others have received, and the incredible value Dickey has given them for the last three years, haggling over $5–6 million is simply insane and ridiculous.
How long can you believe the same things TRS? Patience? Funny how so many other teams have been taking care of business for weeks and weeks now.
TRS86
12/11/2012-10:21am at 10:21 am (UTC -4)
How long? As long as it takes to do the right thing and I currently believe that is what they are doing. Is Dickey still a Met? Can they still sign him for below market value? What has changed to make them speed up the process? Is Dickey giving them an ultimatum to have this done by Christmas? Or even before spring training? If not then why rush it? Why not see if they can get more for him in terms of trade. It may not be what you or I want but all that matters is that they are open to doing what they believe is best for the Mets.
Stick
12/11/2012-10:22am at 10:22 am (UTC -4)
like I said below, just keeping the “negotiations” simmering while they beat the trade bushes.
and a number of other teams (including texas) have not yet taken care of business, in terms of adding a top end SP. Which is why Dickey is still run up the trade flagpole, waiting to see who salutes.
TX
12/11/2012-10:21am at 10:21 am (UTC -4)
I certainly understand the mentality on waiting for someone to blink and add in that 2nd difference maker to a trade. Now, be it my impatience or something else, but first it was Wright and then RA and the team cannot go forward with looking to fix any of the other holes until that is resolved. If you had traded RA, you can look to add AJP and Ross. If you don’t, well I think adding Ross makes the most sense, but will they do it? Who knows, but it is tough on the fan side of things to sit here with all these gaps and knowing it needs an RA Domino to fall.
Stick
12/11/2012-10:23am at 10:23 am (UTC -4)
damn, you stole my idea for the rant I was about to post below. But really you can get those 2 guys regardless of what you do with Dickey.
TX
12/11/2012-10:27am at 10:27 am (UTC -4)
Then why isn’t something happening on the other fronts? That is my question. If RA’s contract will have no impact on other fronts, why have we not even heard a whisper or smelled a whiff of some chatter about Ross or another? The only mention of something else is Mets might be going toward Olivo…
Stick
12/11/2012-11:03am at 11:03 am (UTC -4)
because any mention of money to spend is bullshit, and the FO is some combination of useless, clueless, and giveashitless.
honestly, I have no idea why they are not doing anything that really looks to building the future base, while also not doing anything to even give them a glimmer of hope for next season.
TX
12/11/2012-11:06am at 11:06 am (UTC -4)
StickVader, don’t you go trying to turn me to the darkside.
Stick
12/11/2012-11:15am at 11:15 am (UTC -4)
sorry man, but I am just getting totally befuddled as to what the F they are doing. I understand building for the future, but they are not doing that (or they would have traded Wright and Dickey and others). But even so, can’t you try a little to compete in the ST? And spend a little bit on 1-2 year deals for guys to help them have a shot at competing, since it is not blocking a viable prospect?
Once they signed Wright, they have to keep pretending they are trying to be competitive in the next 2 years while the prospects (that largely don’t exist, other than some pitchers) develop for 2015+?
TX
12/11/2012-11:22am at 11:22 am (UTC -4)
Yeah, my faith is waning. Spending cash on Ross and AJP or even just Ross and bringing back Rauch in no way hamstring this ballclub for the future. Why they don’t do these things and publicly say they are looking for the scrapings from the bottom of the barrel is deflating.
TRS86
12/11/2012-10:30am at 10:30 am (UTC -4)
You have to remember that in the very beginning the Mets said they would be waiting to see what OF were left after the musical chairs game ended.
TX
12/11/2012-10:37am at 10:37 am (UTC -4)
I know that they say that, but I refuse to accept that this team is required to scrape the bottom of the barrel to fill a need. A need, mind you, that isn’t 1 spot. It’s 3!!!! spots. A complete OF. End of the day, I really don’t care if they roll out T-hole and ShopVac or Olive Oil. I’ve resigned myself to a sub-par hitting catching rotation and I hope that the Pounding Polak makes strides that are of (insert famous Polish person)-ian proportions. But going after Ross helps so much, I just can’t sit here and wonder why aren’t they dialoging with him. They have money to spend. They’ve admitted that already.
greggofboken
12/11/2012-10:50am at 10:50 am (UTC -4)
Dickey’s negotation shouldn’t hold up anything at all. The only possible impact I can foresee is whether you’re willing to go more than a year with Ross, and since you’re going to need to anyway to get him signed, it’s a moot point.
There’s no impact on the catching front, because the collection of misfit toys that’s available aren’t going anywhere soon.
They need to get going on Ross. (Though I’d sure like to hear more about Hoffman!)
Stick
12/11/2012-11:05am at 11:05 am (UTC -4)
so you agree, that they have absolutley no intention of getting an actual ML quality viabile player for the team, and will just wait for the rest of the dogs to finish digging around and pick up whatever scraps are left in the bottom of the dumpster?
Stick
12/11/2012-11:09am at 11:09 am (UTC -4)
Boken, amazin avenue had a piece (yesterday I think) about the MiL guys the mets picked up, and wrote a lot about him. He actually sounds like a reasonable possibility for a RH platoon type bat (think Baxter from the other side). Pretty sure he can play CF too, and does hit lefties well.
srt
12/11/2012-11:12am at 11:12 am (UTC -4)
Speaking of AJP…I was watching MLB last night and they were talking about FAs still out there. They mentioned AJ and actually said ‘most hated man in baseball’. I wasn’t paying all that much attention so not sure if that was some tongue-in-cheek type comment or not.
What’s up with that?
Stick
12/11/2012-11:23am at 11:23 am (UTC -4)
he is old-school. Sort of like pete rose, you hate him on the other team (and call him dirty) but love him on yours (where he becomes scrappy and ahrd-nose).
Sadly, since Fred seems to worry more about image than talent or production, my campaign to get him will be for naught.
greggofboken
12/11/2012-9:59am at 9:59 am (UTC -4)
If Dickey were to accept the most recent Mets offer (2 yrs/$20M on top of his $5M option for ’13), the Mets would be getting him for three years at the same dollar amount the Royals just spent on Jeremy Guthrie. Guthrie’s WAR for the last 3 years: 7. Dickey’s: 12.1
If Dickey’s actually willing to accept that offer, the Mets need to do it.
(Martino’s report was that the previous Mets offer was 2 years/$16M. That’s kind of ridiculous.)
kingman 26
12/11/2012-10:03am at 10:03 am (UTC -4)
Agreed 100%.
We shall see, but these offers may indeed be non-offers.
Stick
12/11/2012-10:20am at 10:20 am (UTC -4)
really just place holders to keep things creeping along while the team is shopping him. In this case, I think TRS is right.
TRS86
12/11/2012-10:24am at 10:24 am (UTC -4)
Yes, they aren’t low balling him, they just don’t want to sign him yet and are keeping the negotiations open. Do you expect them to say, “Hey RA, we are going to give you that contract you want but not right now because we might be trading you”?
Stick
12/11/2012-10:25am at 10:25 am (UTC -4)
OK, lets just skip ahead, and assume Dickey never prys the windfall away and remains. Then what do you do? i have seen some people yelling for Bourne, but IMO he is wildly overrated (and that is likely why he is still out there, not getting a 5/80 deal).
So, for the same annual money that Bourne wants, since Pyrzinski and Ross to 2 year deals (Ross may get 3 i suppose) and get more production and cover 2 spots. then roll in CF with a mostly glove guy (or platoon of them) for now. Could also get Carlos Gomez in a trade, and get Bj Upton for 1/5 the price!
OK, there is your of season plan, assuming they sign Dickey to an extension. Sign AJ to catch, Ross for RF, trade for Gomez to play CF, possibly platooning time with Kirk. RF will be Duda and some RH 5th OF sharing time (may be that Hoffman dude they picked up, he hits lefties).
C: AJ/thole
IF: well, that is the same, other than the BU SS will change from Cedeno
OF: duda/gomez/Ross, with Hoffman and Kirk.
SP: same rotation
Pen: Fill it out with live arms fighting for jobs in ST and see what happens.
Ross and AJP eat up the $ from bay and Wright, and help the team be competitive the next 2 years, while hopefully some prospects develop. the rotation is a strength, the Pen, as always, will be a crapshoot.
not a bad looking team overall.
TRS86
12/11/2012-10:31am at 10:31 am (UTC -4)
Yeah, I don’t buy that the Dickey deal is holding up anything. They were going to wait for bottom scrapings either way.
TX
12/11/2012-10:32am at 10:32 am (UTC -4)
Hoffman? or the Baxter?
Stick
12/11/2012-11:07am at 11:07 am (UTC -4)
I thought Hoffman because he is RH. Plus, i forgot all about Baxter. He can fight it out with kirk if need be for the LH job, or Hoffman if you don’t mind 3 lefties.
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:11am at 11:11 am (UTC -4)
Who’s Hoffman???
srt
12/11/2012-11:14am at 11:14 am (UTC -4)
I was just gonna ask the same thing…
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:23am at 11:23 am (UTC -4)
Glenn Hoffman???…Who should have been @1B, bottom 9th, game 6 for Mookie’s grounder???
Stick
12/11/2012-11:29am at 11:29 am (UTC -4)
Look, if yo uare going to be a fan of a dumpster diving team, you have to be willing to jump in there and get dirty.
http://mlb.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=469845#gameType='R'§ionType=career&statType=1&season=2012&level='ALL‘
srt
12/11/2012-11:30am at 11:30 am (UTC -4)
hahaha – they believed they had that WS all sewed up and wanted the vets such as Buckner out on the field for the last out. Great player and all but he could barely trot in those high top cleats he was using to stabilize his ankles.
Would be equivalent to us leaving Duda out in RF when the game and the WS championship was on the line.
Nice memory, fongy….I couldn’t have named him to save my life.
TX
12/11/2012-11:35am at 11:35 am (UTC -4)
Is Trevor Hoffman still around? He can pitch better than FFFrankie.
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:42am at 11:42 am (UTC -4)
Thats all we got left right now. Glenn is the brother of Trevor Hoffman (one of the most overrated closers in history)….AND I always felt they were doing the right thing by Bucker to get him be on that field at that moment. He just screwed it up. The kicker is that while they had been using Hoffman as a defensive replacement for Bucker late in the season, the guy was a converted Shortstop WHO wasn’t exactly Mex, Donnie Baseball or Jim Spencer with the glove.
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:52am at 11:52 am (UTC -4)
Jaime Hoffman…..Thanks Stick. Thats how outta touch I’ve become, didnt even know we signed him.
Just looked at his bio……..eegats!!….This guy stinks!!….
He’ll fit right in!
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:10am at 11:10 am (UTC -4)
Neither A.J. nor Ross are going to sign here.
These are tough winning players who want to be able to at very least “play meaningful games in September”
TRS86
12/11/2012-11:22am at 11:22 am (UTC -4)
I think they both go where the money is… which most likely means they aren’t coming here either.
Stick
12/11/2012-11:25am at 11:25 am (UTC -4)
or playing time, and that they are guaranteed (with no one to fight for a job).
and the money, at there level, the Mets should certainly have enough now for these guys if they want.
the winning part? Well, there are no guarantees, and not everyone can sign with the Yankees, right?
srt
12/11/2012-11:31am at 11:31 am (UTC -4)
Yankees…what do you want to bet they struggle the entire year just for a WC spot.
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:32am at 11:32 am (UTC -4)
C’mon stick…..specificly both these two have had enough exposure for you to know what type of guys they are and to see that unless we go an extra yr and a couple mil more than the next suitor, they ain’t coming here to finish up their baseball lives on a 90/95 loss team. Ain’t happening.
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:27am at 11:27 am (UTC -4)
Agreed!….However given the makeup of those two (especially), if even a team like The Royals (who by the way I think will contend in 2013) give them $1 less, they’ll sign there. Theseplayers and their agents know what’s going on AND how far away we are in this Division.
Stick
12/11/2012-11:31am at 11:31 am (UTC -4)
can’t they at least try to get them? never know, they might end up with the best offer. Or the players will be getting anxious. Maybe they always wanted to play in NY?
all I know is, if they don’t make an attempt, it won’t happen.
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:35am at 11:35 am (UTC -4)
Hey, I’d love to get both of them, don’t get me wrong BUT Cowboy Cody Ross and the ultra-intense A.J. are gonna sign with The Mets b/c of New York?
Seriously now?
Stick
12/11/2012-11:52am at 11:52 am (UTC -4)
maybe he saw midnight cowboy and fell in love with Times Square?
Hey, I am grasping at straws, work with me here!
fongulalou
12/11/2012-11:57am at 11:57 am (UTC -4)