Mets shop Cy Young winner Dickey
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The New York Mets continue to contemplate trading R.A. Dickey, and a potential deal could unfold in the hometown of this year's National League Cy Young Award winner.
The Mets and Dickey, who was born and raised in Nashville, haven't come to terms on a contract extension. The knuckleballer is signed for next season at $5.05 million after the Mets exercised the club option in his contract.
A source with knowledge of the negotiations said the sides are differing on the length of a potential contract. The Mets want to limit a deal to two years because Dickey is 38, but he wants three years.
Dickey can become a free agent after the 2013 season, and the Mets are weighing whether trade him this winter -- perhaps at the Winter Meetings, which began Monday at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Resort -- rather than risk losing him at the end of next season with only draft-pick compensation in return if he walks as a free agent.
"It's difficult to agree on R.A.'s worth because he has taken such a unique career path," Mets general manager Sandy Alderson told The Sports Xchange. "There really aren't any good comparables."
Dickey had a 22-28 career record when he joined the Mets as a 35-year-old in 2010. Over three seasons in New York, he is 39-28 with a 2.95 ERA in 94 games, including 91 starts.
Dickey went 20-6 with a 2.73 ERA in 34 games (33 starts) last season, and he easily outdistanced the Los Angeles Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw in the Cy Young voting. Dickey led the NL with five complete games, three shutouts, 233 2/3 innings pitches and 230 strikeouts.
The Kansas City Royals have been prominently mentioned as a suitor for Dickey, and the Mets reportedly are asking for outfielder Wil Myers, a 21-year-old who was named the 2012 Minor League Player of the Year by both Baseball America and USA Today. Myers hit a combined .314 with 37 home runs and 109 RBI in 134 games with Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Triple-A Omaha.
A source with direct knowledge of the situation said the Royals would not part with Myers and have countered with an offer of center fielder Lorenzo Cain and a prospect. Cain hit .266 with seven homers and 10 stolen bases in 61 games during an injury-marred 2012 seasons.
The Dodgers and Boston Red Sox are also said to have significant interest in Dickey.
