5 Reasons The Mets Blew It By Trading Dickey

It seems like scouts, writers, and other GMs all love this trade for the Mets. A 38 year old journeyman pitcher, coming off his career year, dealt for the best young talent available and filling a hole at the catching position (which is the hardest hole to fill). I get all that and can’t argue with the logic and sensibility of the move on those merits. But I am still depressed about losing my favorite Met and can come up with Five Reasons The Mets Should Have Kept R.A. Dickey:

5. Cash Money
Aren’t the Wilpons supposed to be broke? Aren’t they trying to sell $63 nosebleeds? Did they consider the merchandising opportunity behind their Cy Young winner? Maybe they should have consulted The 7 Line about how to sell some t-shirts before shipping the golden goose to the American League.

4. 2013
Dickey not only led the team in wins, he also led the team in innings. Who will make up those innings in 2013? Mets fans deserve to see progress after yet another 4th place finish, don’t we? Shouldn’t, in the 3rd year of the Alderson Era, there at least be optimism for a winning season even if it’s not until 2014 when the plan is supposed to really come together? How does this deal make the Mets better in the short term? It doesn’t.

3. 2014
From what I understand, Dickey wanted a 2 year deal worth $26MM after being paid $5MM in 2013. If I were the Mets I would have made that deal but would have spread the money out so Dickey would have made $10MM annually from 2013-2015. Look around the league, there are a lot of bad pitchers making $10MM. Andy Pettite missed half of 2012 and the Yankees are still paying him $13MM next year. Even if you think Dickey will be on the downswing in 2014, $10MM is not a crazy salary. And if 2014 is when it all comes together, what a great weapon a knuckleballer would be to have in the playoffs, and to anchor a staff of young studs to get us there.

2. R.A. Dickey is Awesome
R.A. Dickey was my favorite Met and when your favorite Met becomes the team’s best player and wins 20 games and the Cy Young, it allows you to forget that your team has no outfielders and no bullpen and no catcher. Travis d’Arnaud doncha know may be an all star catcher someday, but I don’t think anyone’s projecting him to be Mike Piazza, not that anyone is Mike Piazza, but I just mean the kind of guy that transcends his game and energizes a fanbase. R.A. is that guy and that kind of guy is hard to find. The New York Mets should be able to afford to keep those kinds of guys and find other ways to build their roster.

1. Fandom is Illogical and Irrational
Sunday night I calmly broke the news to my 5 year old son that the Mets had traded R.A. Dickey. He sobbed as much as he did when his fish died a few months ago. We had a talk, and he wanted to know what the Blue Jays uniform looked like, and if we could still root for Dickey, and if the Mets could get him back since it was just a trade and not “for keeps.” He eventually went back to his Hot Wheels and seemed to be OK. I wondered why I ever wanted him to be a Mets fan. Rooting for a sports team is a ridiculous waste of energy. Putting your heart into the outcome of the performances of millionaire athletes who don’t care about you is silly. It’s an emotional, irrational decision we make about which team to root for and with which players to bond. We do it without thinking about it and that’s what makes it fun, a pastime. But when two years in a row the Mets let go of their fanbase’s favorite assets, they just may also be causing their fans to examine their passion objectively and rationally. If we do that, many of us may realize we should get on the floor and play Hot Wheels with our kid instead of reading blogs in December or screaming at the T.V. next April.

14 Replies to “5 Reasons The Mets Blew It By Trading Dickey”

  1. the problem we have is we lack much players with trade value. Either R A or Niese were going to go so they held on to Jon and traded R A . look its hard to trade R A but then again. we did get value back for him. . I apericated R A but we would be a 4th place team with or without him we needed to get better at catcher. and this pitcher maybe a bonus for the future rotation. in 2016.

    1. The. lunacy is in this franchise thinking it’s OK to yet again divest a team and fans of its most beloved players. Two years in a row is wrong and unacceptable and is a first in major league history. The message being sent is loud and clear – don’t play here, don’t sign here, and especially don’t thrive here, don’t be the best in the league or you will be shipped out and besmirched once deemed replaceable, or too valuable to keep. .

      1. I apericated and respect R A the problem is we do not have many tradable pieces ,My only issue is that R A deserved more respect from the front office that he has from the fan base but to turn around a guy who came here 3 years ago as a after thought. He strived here and we can turn him around for two real deent pieces for the future i think its a win win. . Unlike Reyes that left on his own we did not get much back. Here we got a decent haul for Dickey i wish we did this for Reyes if he was going to leave us we should of traded him. R A easily would of walked after this year I personally would of had no problems keeping him and signing him here long term but i have no issue in this trade beause we got value back . but until he signs he can be back here if he does not agree but i expect him to sign tomorrow with Toronto if not sooner.

  2. Definitely agree. Two years in a row they put us through this mega heartache and what they’ve done is historic – batting title one year and CY Young the next both gone in back to back seasons.

    And as you RA is my favorite Met and considering how long I’ve been at this as Mets fan close to the early years, that says a lot.

    And quite frankly, the disgust I feel toward the front office and ownership has no equal. And with the two banished players now on the Blue Jays, I’m committed to following that team closely and open to wherever that takes me. This then morphs into viable option for disgruntled Mets fans who resent what those in charge of the Mets have done to sever ties with beloved fan favorites we want to actively root for throughout the season.

    I’m disgruntled enough to encourage similar-feeling Mets fans to spend your Mets baseball money elsewhere, such as charity, Reyes and Dickey Blue Jay Jerseys, and at Yankee Stadium for when Blue Jays come to town. Spread the word if you share this sentiment.

  3. The idea that the Mets could keep Dickey and be competitive in the near
    term was wrong and we as fans need to accept that this team can’t be
    bandaided together like it has since 2007 and needed a full rebuild.

    And so, number 4 is really the crux of the issue isn’t it? The team is no where near competitive, it has massive holes at C, OF and up and down the pitching staff. As much as I absolutely love Dickey, he was pretty much the only tradeable asset that they had. So they could either keep limping along or utilize a player at the height of his value to plug holes, which is something the Mets traditionally botch badly. By trading him they plug the C hole, and continue to stockpile young, high upside arms, which are the staple of the best teams right now, because they allow them to plug in young starters and relievers without having to sign also rans for millions of dollars.

    You need to cut Sandy and team some slack, it takes any new GM a few seasons to turn over the roster, clear out the bad contracts and wait for the prospects to mature. Sandy has done a great job of this so far, and it should start paying dividends soon. Prior to last season I said I was prepared for 3 seasons of losing if it meant getting the organization on the right track, and so far I’ve seen nothing that dispels that timeline.

    And I say this as Dickey, Beltran and Reyes (my favorite Mets of the last decade plus) were all sent packing in one manner or another, generally with the Mets press hit squad crapping on them, which is the only objectionable part of this to me. And so I will continue to wear my Dickey jersey to every game I go to next year.

  4. I am a Met fan basically born with the Mets. My father was a die-hard NL and Bklyn Dodger fan. It was a natural evolution. IT does seem that we are losing the “lovable- ness” when we toss aside an award winning pitcher and a batting champion each of whom manifested Mets spirit; a credit to them. It is still a team where miracles can occur. Through thick and thin despite complaining and wondering about direction that there is little fan control of what transpires; it is a business. I have been in the fold too long to be dismayed for long. We are getting younger as a team. Youth brings spirit.

    In today’s holiday season and with the shocking grief of the fatalities in Newtown Ct. baseball is a mere blip on the radar. God Bless the families and the lost innocents who will never be a fan of anything.

    I can only think of the many faces at Shea and Citi that embody the spirit of those that were taken way too soon. What does the roster mean to any child? I still feel like a little kid at Citi.

    I want a winner as much as the next fan. I want children to be safe all over the world.

    We will return to form, we will get stronger and we need hope. That applies to us all right now.

  5. Oh, and I forgot to mention earlier, Ken Davidoff and Kevin Burkhardt are scum and should be ashamed of themselves!

  6. Shannon are you going to go to less games because of the trade?

    Look the Mets are going nowhere in 2013! We all know that. They are punting this upcoming year. We are going to finish in 4th or last with or without him.

    I think we are getting a lot for him and in the end it will pay off. Wait till 2014!

  7. What has holding on to the players we ‘loved’ so much ever done for this team? You may not like what Sandy is doing right now but you will in a few years when this team is contending year in and year out. Look at the history of this organization and the playoffs. They have not won their division 2 years in a row. The only time they made the playoffs 2 years in a row is 99 & 00. What Sandy is doing is building an organization that will compete long term not a team that will compete for a few years then go back into the gutter. He is trying to rid the fans of the constant seesaw that is being a Met fan with a year or 2 of hope and then a decade of despair.

    It seems like you guys would prefer being a fourth place team with players you ‘like’ and have gotten to know instead of being a good team year in and year out with players you don’t know right now. I promise you, you will get to know Travis D’Arnaud and others that Sandy brings in and love them like you did the others before them.

  8. I view this as adding another team to root for–I can now watch and cheer for Toronto–enough ex Mets to make it fun–even their Manager was a Met. I think Alderson did the right thing–the chances of him repeating the success he had in 2012 is pretty slim. i think he will continue to be a good picture but i don’t think you will see another CY Young. Lets hope this one of those trades that helps both teams. I remember being absolutely devastated when the Mets traded Tom Seaver but it didn’t stop me from being a fan

  9. I love the mets but I also want to see the team win. the team isnt going anywhere. we got a great piece for the future. trade is a no-brainer

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