Baseball

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Will Dickey spark playoff run?

Blue Jays banking on stellar contribution from knuckleball master

By: Dan Ralph

Posted: 12/19/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0

TORONTO -- It's quirky, unpredictable and been described in baseball circles as an oddity and "pitch of last resort."

But the Toronto Blue Jays are banking heavily on R.A. Dickey's dancing knuckleball leading them back to the baseball playoffs.

Toronto acquired the National League Cy Young Award winner in a seven-player deal with the New York Mets on Monday. Dickey, 38, becomes the fourth pitcher to win the Cy Young then be traded before the next season, joining David Cone, Pedro Martinez and Roger Clemens.

Dickey posted a 20-6 record and 2.73 earned-run average last season with New York, but his go-to pitch wasn't a blazing fastball, nasty slider or deep-bending curve. Often he got batters out with the knuckleball, a slow, unassuming pitch that flutters like a butterfly as it heads to home plate.

"This may be a pitch of last resort, which I think is accurate, but think about over history how many last resorts have ended up being successful," Dickey said during a conference call Tuesday. "A lot.

"It doesn't mean just because it's a last resort it can't be a legitimate, successful weapon in the major leagues and that's what I'm trying to prove and it has taken a long time... at the end of the day, results usually speak for themselves and I think in this case that's what happened."

Toronto hasn't made the playoffs since winning its second straight World Series title in 1993 and last season posted a 73-89 record in the AL East. General manager Alex Anthopoulos has been busy this off-season revamping his roster, having acquired all-stars Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, Melky Cabrera and Dickey.

Anthopoulos is investing heavily in Dickey, signing him to a two-year, US$25-million contract extension with a $12-million club option for 2016. Dickey is scheduled to earn for $5.25 million in 2013 coming off becoming the first knuckleball pitcher to capture the Cy Young Award.

"I think Alex should be commended on being able to see past those stereotypical analyzations a lot of guys give the pitch as a gimmick or something that isn't legitimate," Dickey said. "I think we can all admit the past year and the past three years in general have been legitimate and I think because of that and the consistency."

The good news for Toronto is Dickey started six games against American League competition over his three seasons in New York, posting a 4-0 record and 1.71 ERA.

Dickey began toying with the knuckleball in 2005 while with the Texas Rangers and initially struggled with it. But Dickey continued working on the pitch and has enjoyed solid success with it since joining the Mets in 2010, posting a 2.95 ERA over his three-year span in New York.

A former first-round draft pick of the Rangers, Dickey will anchor a rotation in Toronto that includes Johnson and Buehrle as well as returnees Ricky Romero and Brandon Morrow. But Dickey admits he didn't initially embrace becoming a knuckleball pitcher.

"A part of me was sad about that because I was having to admit that what I had to offer as a conventional pitcher wasn't good enough and that's always sad for a competitor," he said. "But I was thankful I was down in my career far enough to be able to have people that cared enough about me to tell me the truth.

"I had to be self-aware enough to know what I was wasn't going to cut it if I wanted to chase the big-league dream and I had to come up with something else. Thankfully I was at a place where I had to embrace what they were offering."

The busy off-season certainly makes Toronto a solid pick in the AL East, at least on paper.

The challenge for Dickey and the new-look Blue Jays will be getting to know one another in spring training and developing into a cohesive unit heading into what will be an eagerly anticipated 2013 in southern Ontario.

"You've got a lot of guys there that have experience," Dickey said. "Another thing that's going to help is a lot of us have played with one another throughout our careers, certainly against one another.

"I played with Jose Reyes as a New York Met, I've played with Brandon Morrow with the Seattle Mariners and I know those guys and I know what they're all about and that certainly helps the situation."

-- The Canadian Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 19, 2012 C6

Fact Check

Have you found an error, or know of something we’ve missed in one of our stories? Please use the form below and let us know.

* Required

In which story did you find the error? *
Please post the headline of the story or the title of the video with the error.
What was the error? *
Please post exactly what was wrong with the story.
What should we have written?
Please indicate your source for the correct information.
Who else should we interview to improve this story?
Please include any contact information you may have.
Can we contact you in the future for advice on stories about this topic?
Yes

No
First Name: *
Last Name: *
E–mail Address: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Phone: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Colour:
Are you blue? If you can see this, leave it blank and get some CSS support.
Enter the words that you see: * This is to prevent our forms from being filled out automatically.
You have failed to correctly identify the words in the box above. Please try again.

More Baseball

Undock

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.

Have Your Say

New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.