Wednesday, January 9, 2013

R.A. Dickey throws parting knuckleball at Mets

R.A. Dickey was formally introduced as a Toronto Blue Jay Tuesday and lobbed a floating knuckleball — maybe more like high-and-inside fastball — at his former team — the New York Mets.

Dickey said he is thankful the Mets did not meet his contract demands and he is thrilled to join the Blue Jays, a team he said is "all in" to win the World Series.

The Blue Jays showed off their new pitcher at Rogers Centre after acquiring the National League Cy Young winner from the Mets last month.

The 38-year-old knuckleballer admitted the Mets helped him cultivate his pitching style but said he was glad to move on.



Dickey, who signed a $30 million, three-year deal, took a backhanded parting shot at the Mets by saying if Toronto doesn't win, it won't be because Alex Anthopoulos didn't try. The Blue Jays general manager had a busy off-season and also acquired high profile studs like shortstop Jose Reyes, and pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buerhle to go with the signing of Dickey.

"You can see that he's made all the moves that he made," Dickey said. "If we don't win it won't be because of him."

If Dickey's comment was a jab at the Mets front office, Anthopoulos added a hook. Speaking about the Mets offer of two years, $20 million to Dickey, the Jays GM told him it was beneath Dickey's dignity to accept such an offer.

"I even told him this when I met him," Anthopoulos said.  "I didn't think he got the respect he deserved."

Th GM went on to thank the Mets for making Dickey available.

"Guys like this don't come around very often," said Anthopoulos. "And  they don't get traded very often."

It sounds like Dickey is going to enjoy his six months a year north of the border with the vastly improved Blue Jays.

"I think this could be a few special years for this city, this this country and the players," he said.


37 comments:

  1. You got your $$$...just move on and shut up

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haaaaaaterrrrrr

      Delete
    2. I buy almost everything except food and clothing from online auctions. most people aren't aware of the almost unbelievable deals that they can get from online auction sites. the site that has the best deals is saveBang.com
      and i checked with the better business bureau and was told that it is all legit. how they can sell gift
      cards, laptops, cameras, and all kinds of goodies that we all want for 50-90% off, i don't know. i do
      know that i bought my son an ipad there for less than $100 and my husband a $250 loews gift
      cards for $48. why would i even think about shopping anyplace else?

      Delete
    3. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
  2. It's called a press conference, you know where you're expected to speak and answer reporters questions.

    ReplyDelete
  3. What are you crying about, Anonym*ss(fill in the blank). Dickey gave us three great years, and was severely underpaid the whole time. He only spoke the truth, and was a lot more restrained than I would have been. The Three Stooges that own the Mets flat out gave up on the team last year when one good hitting outfielder and a couple of guys in the bullpen could have meant a Wild Card slot. I would have been glad to get away, too.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Remember, this was the franchise that traded Tom Seaver but signed Bobby Bonilla twice. I guess the forgot about Bobby's first go round.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. and they are still paying him.

      Delete
    2. i read in the daily news,bonilla was divorceing his wife and she wanted half of the money the mets are paying him.which is a million a year til the year 2027. for not getting paid the 5 mil they owed him that year. who would make such a stupid deal i don't know. but its true.

      Delete
  5. I guess no one is immune from throwing dirt. Even if Dickey and the Jays are right about the Mets' low ball offer, why rub their face in it in a public manner? Unless, the Mets did something that caused him to react that way OR he really didn't want to leave the organization? Either way, I am disappointed that Dickey didn't take the high road; he struck me as a guy who would. Hope he does well in Toronto.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Because the Mets didn't take the high road !!! CC may be next..If he wins the next Cy Young??

      Delete
  6. It was the best press conference I've ever seen. He was thoughtful, intelligent, well-spoken, happy to be with his new team, and he didn't use any of those dumb cliches like "one day at a time", "110%", "no 'I' in team", etc.

    If the Mets were dumb enough to let him go, I can tell you that everyone up here is very happy he's with the Blue Jays.

    Dickey was very gracious in the way he spoke of his time with the Mets. If you'd seen the full press conference instead of just reading selected soundbites, you'd have seen that, too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree 100%. I watched the entire thing and wish I could view it again.

      Delete
  7. Really people? What did he say that was so wrong? That Toronto made some fantastic trades over the winter to make them a contender in 2013? That he was glad to be on ballclub that could win a championship before he retires? You know that was never going to happen with the Mets.

    C'mon we all know how much he wanted to stay in NY and I'm sure it hurt like hell when they tossed him aside for a catcher with a bum knee and pitcher who is still 3 years away from wearing a Mets uniform (if he ever does). And I don't think money was the whole issue either. I am a little disappointed with how he reacted but look at the way the organization and the NY media treated him going out the door.

    I will root my heart out for him, until the day he retires!!

    Signed: Still Heart Broken in Brooklyn

    ReplyDelete
  8. Why do the Jays think that because they sign a multitude of high-priced players that they are instant pennant winners?
    Ask about the success of the Miami Marlins using the same theory? Dickey you were a class-act until you opened your ungrateful mouth about your former team (they made it possible for you to earn another $10m). Money, money, money and not a lick of loyalty left. Too bad Canada has become infected too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. he didnt say anything that negitive. sorry your team blows. get over it. youre just a big cry baby looking for something to bitch about.

      Delete
    2. sorry dude, the Jays don't "think" anything. all they've said is that they're an improved team which nobody will argue. the one's who are toting them as pennant winners.. sorry world series winners are the odds makers from vegas.. not the Jays themselves. get your facts straight!

      Delete
    3. haha! Bitter little Met's fan. Just remember (and this is coming from a St. Louisan)the METS are pond scum. And the Blue Jays are looking damn good. Cards/Jays World Series 13'.

      Delete
  9. I don't think that Dickey meant anything as a swipe at the Mets - He's right - the Mets were not ready to contend and they still need pieces to do so - it will probably be at least another year or two before they's considered a playoff threat and at Dickey's age he wants to have a chance at the brass ring. There was also the financial fiasco of the past few years that the team and ownership are just starting to dig out of. As for that issue a lot of rich and smart people got screwed by Madoff including people like Steven Spielberg and Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Kratzenberg and a host of hollywood celebs not to mention Sandy Koufax and Elliot Spitzer (former NY Attorney General)

    ReplyDelete
  10. 20 mil for 2 yrs, 30 mil for 3 years...seems all relevant to me...oh yeah, and RIDICULOUSLY TOO MUCH MONEY TO PAY ANYONE, IN ANY SPORT, TO PLAY A GAME. One of the many things I learned from my father (R.I.P.) was that the Steinbrenner era and the GROSSLY SWOLLEN CONTRACTS would spoil the game. Certainly has for me. Consider this...Dickey--38yrs old--should have been happy to get 2 years, no? But he's just another money whore like the rest of 'em.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. i totally agree// where is the joy and fun in playing pro sports anymore. people are struggling to feed their families and keep their homes and thes athlets are getting millions each yr. and it still isnt enough. when is enough--enough? come on people find something else to do with ur money besides supporting these ungrateful people for playing a game

      Delete
    2. thats 100% correct

      the 1st anonymous who calls it like it is...give me 30 million and i've got NOTHING to complain about

      Delete
    3. And if your rival company offered you WAY more money to do the same job you are doing today, and had a better product to sell and was giving you a car to drive, you would not leave your company and go to the new one? What a bunch of crap. These guys are no different thay you, except their paychecks have a lot more zeros after the main number. Cut them some slack. Business is business and you would do the same thing if put in their shoes...just admit it!

      Delete
    4. Maybe he (and may other's) spend a large % of their "greedy money" on charitable causes and good natured things in general. Don't judge an INDIVIDUAL on the way things appear as a WHOLE.

      Delete
    5. P.S. as a homegrown CARDINALS fan I can say this without hesistation. "THE METS SUCK". and the PHILLIES. and the TIGERS. And the BREWERS. See where I'm going with this....and good luck to Toronto. They deserve a good team.

      Delete
  11. Dickey was one of a very few Mets players that made watching the team play tolerable. When will the Wilpon group develop a strategy to develop home grown talent, acquire legitimate stars when needed and put a winning team on the field? I've been a Mets fan since 1962 and the apparent apathy about winning on the part of the current ownership is pathetic. They should either properly invest in the team (and that doesn't mean getting an aging has been every few years) or sell it. True Mets fans deserve more. Am I right?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Even former players are taking shots at the Mets. They are a bunch of underacheving overpaid players. The only fans the mets have in NY are those that do not like the Yankees. Now with the Nationals doing so well there is more room at the bottom for the Mets.

    ReplyDelete
  13. How is this a parting shot at the Mets? There is not a single person in baseball that doesn't freely agree to that statement, including the Wilpons.

    ReplyDelete
  14. at 38 he is lucky he got 3 years.life is beautiful, when people are starving for a winner.

    ReplyDelete
  15. NY Mets formula for fielding a team:
    Player wins batting title- trade him
    Player wins Cy Young Award- trade him.
    Enough said!

    ReplyDelete
  16. The Mets have no idea what to do. They throw money away. They built another non-pitcher (doesn't matter what folks say)/ non-hitter friendly ball park, they don't know how to recruit, they signed David Wright for way too much money (knowing they don't plan to try and contend), where are the black players (they don't employ them), among other sad things about this organization. I hope Dickey finds success with his new team. As a Mets fan I'm tired of the nonsense!!

    ReplyDelete
  17. HE IS RIGHT,the mets do everything they can to NOT have a championship team. they would rather give the talent away to other teams so they can win championships.

    ReplyDelete
  18. As a long and I mean long suffering Met fan, going back to their starting days in 1961-62, I have seen the best of times and the worst of times, as many of you I am sure can agree. This is the worst of times. The NY Mets are never going to be any good unless the Wilpon's sell the team, or hire a GM who knows how to do their job. This GM is a joke, trying to salvage as much money as he can to line his pockets with big bonuses. The only problem with that Mr. Sandy Alderson is that the fans will eventually get tired of the mediocre team you are putting on the field. Soon enough the money will begin to dwindle as fans abandon the team, and eventually you will be fired, and turmoil will continue in Met Land. Go and spend some money, get quality players. If you think that letting Santana go and paying $15 million of his contract for some other team to pick him up you have saved money (then you are not as economically sound a GM as you believe yourself to be). If Santana is healthy he is worth every penny. And by the way the No-Hitter he pitched last year is worth all the money he has been paid. Now lets get on with it Sandy, open the wallet (there is plenty of money in the reserve) go get a quality reliever, a quality center fielder, a quality starter, and watch as the seats will get filled, Oh and by the way as seats are filled their will be plenty of money to go around. If you think lower quality players will equal revenue, you are in the wrong business buddy, you need to spend money to make money. You have got to create an environment where the fans feel it is worth doling out the big bucks to come to the games. I live in the Southern tip of NJ over 2 hrs away from Citifield, over the past two years I have spent over $500.00 to take myself, wife and two daughters to a game, and I did this several times so say I have invested well over $2000.00 a year going to the games. Well that stopped this past year, only went to two games, and it will be 0 games this year, and until you put a worthwhile product on the field. If you think you can get away with a low-quality product and last, then you need to read "Built to Last" or Good to Great. I think Sandy's better days are behind him, and I believe Fred Wilpon needs to make a business decision like the real estate mogul that he is and SELL, SELL, SELL the team or BUY, BUY, BUY the players who can bring WINNING back the NY.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ehhm..wasn't really a no-hitter, since Holliday DID hit that ball inside the foul line. But other than that, I like your views. Can you tell I'm lucky enough to be a St. Louis Cardinal?

      Delete
  19. Remember that Dickey is still relatively new to the limelight. I like and respect the guy, and appreciate what he did for the Mets. But even he has admitted that he's made mistakes when commenting to reporters. For example, he chose a Mets holiday party (for charity) to take shot at the front office.

    While the Mets are often awkward in the way they negotiate (eg. not making an offer to Reyes last year), I do understand that trading Dickey for young talent may be in their best interest for the long run. And, if the Mets offers to Dickey were inadequate, I don't think the Toronto GM was smart to say that.

    I wish the Blue Jays and Dickey well, but, with all the trades andcomments, if Toronto doesn't go deep into the playoff in 2013, that GM may be looking for a new job.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Having suffered as a Mets fan for decades, I cannot hold a grude against Dickey. The Wilpons on the otherhand need to sell this team NOW. All they have done is drive the fans away with some of the stupidest trades and moves ever seen in the sport. If you are not going to invest and manage the team with the goal of making the playoffs consistently, why bother keeping the team and keeping the fans in misery?

    ReplyDelete