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R. A. Dickey

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R. A. Dickey
New York Mets – No. 43
Starting Pitcher
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
debut
April 22, 2001, for the Texas Rangers
Career statistics
(through 2010)
Win-Loss33-37
Earned run average4.70
Strikeouts375
Teams

Robert Allen "R. A." Dickey (born October 29, 1974 in Nashville, Tennessee) is a right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher for the New York Mets. He was previously with the Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners, Minnesota Twins and Milwaukee Brewers organizations. After having limited success in the majors as a conventional starting pitcher, Dickey has since made the transition to becoming a knuckleball pitcher.

College

Dickey majored in English literature at the University of Tennessee, where he had a 3.35 GPA and was named Academic All-American.[1] He was also named Academic All-Southeastern Conference.[2]

Professional career

1996—2006: Texas Rangers

Dickey was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the first round (18th overall) of the 1996 Major League Baseball Draft. After being drafted by the Rangers, Dickey was initially offered a signing bonus of $810,000, before a Rangers team physician saw Dickey's arm hanging oddly in a picture. The Rangers subsequently did further evaluation of Dickey, leading to the discovery of a missing ulnar collateral ligament, and reduced their offer to $75,000.[3][4] Dickey has been quoted as saying "Doctors look at me and say I shouldn’t be able to turn a doorknob without feeling pain,"[3] making his ability to pitch somewhat remarkable.

Dickey debuted with the Rangers in 2001. "His stuff was dime-a-dozen, though: a high-80′s fastball, an occasional fringy breaking ball, and a forkball he dubbed 'The Thing.'"[4] The start of the 2004 season was thought to be a turning point in Dickey's career, as he managed to compile a 4-1 record through his first five starts. This hot streak was short-lived however, and he ended up finishing the season a disappointing 6-7 with a 5.61 ERA.[5]

Transition to the knuckleball

Throughout his career, Dickey did not know that his "forkball" pitch was actually a hard knuckleball, but by 2005, Dickey had discovered that the best way to extend his career was to perfect the pitch.[3] At the beginning of the 2006 season, the Rangers gave Dickey a chance to try out his knuckleball at the major league level by naming him the 5th starter. However, after giving up 6 home runs in his first start on April 6, tying the modern era baseball record with another knuckleballer, Tim Wakefield, he was demoted to the Rangers' Triple-A minor league affiliate, the Oklahoma RedHawks.

2007: Milwaukee Brewers

On January 13, 2007, he signed a minor league deal with the Milwaukee Brewers and spent the 2007 season with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds. After finishing the season with a 12-6 record and a 3.80 ERA, Dickey was named the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year.[6]

2007—2009: Minnesota Twins & Seattle Mariners

Dickey pitching for the Seattle Mariners in 2008

Dickey became a minor league free agent after the season. On November 28, 2007, he signed a minor league contract with the Minnesota Twins that included an invitation to spring training, but was claimed in the Rule 5 Draft by the Seattle Mariners on December 6, 2007.

On March 29, 2008, the Mariners traded minor league catcher Jair Fernandez to the Twins to retain the rights for Dickey and initially optioned him to Triple-A Tacoma, recalling him to the major league club on April 14.[7]

On August 17, 2008, Dickey tied the record for most wild pitches in an inning, with 4. This came against the Minnesota Twins in the 5th inning. He joins four others including Hall of Famers Walter Johnson and Phil Niekro among others who have accomplished this feat. He became a free agent after the season after refusing a minor league assignment.

In 2008, he led the majors in games started with fewer than four days of rest, with six.[8]

On December 23, 2008, Dickey signed a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training with the Minnesota Twins.[9] He would go on to pitch in 35 games for the Twins that season.

2010—present: New York Mets

On January 5, 2010, Dickey signed with the New York Mets to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training.[10] He was assigned to the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons to begin the season. While playing for the Bisons, Dickey threw a one-hitter on April 29. He gave up a single to the first batter, and then retired the next twenty-seven in a row.

On May 19, 2010, the New York Mets purchased Dickey's contract from the Buffalo Bisons, and made his first appearance as a Met against the Washington Nationals on the same day. In his debut for the Mets, Dickey pitched well, going a full 6 innings, giving up five hits, two earned runs, and striking out two, but received a no-decision. His next start, May 25 against the Philadelphia Phillies, he went 6 innings again, giving up 9 hits, walking 3 and striking out 7 in an 8-0 shutout for his first victory as a Met. On August 13, 2010, Dickey threw a complete game one-hit shutout of the Philadelphia Phillies - the only hit being a single surrendered to Phillies starting pitcher Cole Hamels.[11] On September 8, 2010, Dickey recorded his tenth win, marking the first time that he has reached double digit wins in his major league career. He finished the 2010 season with a very strong ERA of 2.84, which was 7th best in the National League and 10th in all of baseball, and served as a rare bright spot on an otherwise disappointing season.[12] In 2010, Dickey had a career year and recorded career highs in Games Started (26), Wins (11), Complete Games (2), Innings Pitched (174.1), Strikeouts (104), ERA (2.84), WHIP (1.19), and BAA (.252).

On January 29, 2011, Dickey agreed to a 2 year contract with the Mets. Under the agreement, Dickey will receive a 1 million dollar signing bonus, $2.25 million in 2011 and $4.25 million in 2012. In addition, the Mets have a $5 million option for 2013 with a $300,000 buyout. [1]

International career

R. A. Dickey
Medal record
Representing  United States
Men's Baseball
Summer Olympics
Bronze medal – third place 1996 Atlanta Team

Dickey was a member of the 1996 US Olympic Baseball team that won a bronze medal in Atlanta. Dickey started two games, recording wins in both.[13]

Personal

Dickey has a wife named Anne, with whom he has two daughters and a recently born son, Mary Gabriel Lila Anne, and Van.[2]

One of his favorite hobbies is reading. In fact, he keeps a stack of books in his locker at all times, including a Life of Pi by Yann Martel and a collection of works by C. S. Lewis. In addition, if he had not become a professional athlete, he would have wanted to be an English professor.[14]

A born-again Christian, he helps operate the Ocala, Florida-based Honoring the Father Ministries which provides medical supplies, powdered milk and baseball equipment to the impoverished in Latin America.[15]

References

  1. ^ "Major League Baseball's first-half surprises - ESPN". Sports.espn.go.com. 2010-06-30. Retrieved 2010-07-23.
  2. ^ a b Chasing the Dream- About RA, Chasing the Dream
  3. ^ a b c Schwarz, Alan (February 27, 2008). "New Twist Keeps Dickey's Career Afloat". The New York Times.
  4. ^ a b "Dickey Has Mets Fans' Hearts Aflutter | FanGraphs Baseball". Fangraphs.com. 2010-07-22. Retrieved 2010-07-23.
  5. ^ R.A. Dickey Statistics - Baseball-Reference.com
  6. ^ "R.A. Dickey Named PCL Pitcher-of-the-Year". Nashville Sounds.com. 29 August 2007. Retrieved 22 September 2007.
  7. ^ "Seattle Mariners 2010 Team Transactions: Trades, DL, Free Agents and Callups - ESPN". Sports.espn.go.com. Retrieved 2010-07-23.
  8. ^ "2008 Major League Baseball Starting Pitching". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2010-07-23.
  9. ^ Thesier, Kelly (2008-12-24). "Dickey, Twins agree to terms". MLB.com. Retrieved 2008-12-24.
  10. ^ "Mets sign Dickey, five others to minor league deals". Sports Network. seattlepi.com. January 5, 2010. Retrieved 2010-01-05.
  11. ^ Lapointe, Joe (2010-08-14). "Dickey, Man of Letters, Lets Numbers Do Talking". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-08-15.
  12. ^ Belson, Ken (1990-07-15). "Dickey an Unexpected Bright Spot in Mets' Dim Season - Bats Blog - NYTimes.com". Bats.blogs.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2010-08-20.
  13. ^ http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/di/r-a-dickey-1.html
  14. ^ Kepner, Tyler (July 8, 2010). "Mets Knuckleballer Dickey Keeps His Fingers Crossed". The New York Times.
  15. ^ Vecsey, George. "Dickey Is at Home, In Any House," The New York Times, Wednesday, September 15, 2010.

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