Congrats to R.A.!! Two years after R.A. Dickey was the first player cut by the New York Mets in spring training, he now has a Cy Young Award on his résumé.
Dickey won the National League Cy Young on Wednesday, becoming the first knuckleballer to receive the honor.
Dickey, who went 20-6, received 27 of 32 first-place votes and 209 overall points in balloting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershawfinished second with two first-place votes and 96 points, followed by Washington Nationals left-hander Gio Gonzalez, who received one first-place vote and 93 points.
“Clayton and Gio were both just supernatural in the way that they perform,” Dickey said to MLB Network. “I’ve had to hit against them both, and it is ridiculous trying to pick up the ball on those guys. They gave everybody fits. Just being mentioned in the same breath as those guys is an honor.
“But for me, this is an honor to be shared. It’s a great honor, and I am not a self-made man by any stretch of the imagination. There have been countless people who have poured into me in a way that has changed my life — not only on the field, but off. A few of those men are some of the knuckleballers that have had incredible seasons that didn’t necessarily get acknowledged for their feats — Phil Niekro, Tim Wakefield, Charlie Hough. This is a victory for all of us, not to mention, the New York Mets fan base.”
The 38-year-old Dickey became the third Met to win the award. Tom Seaver received the honor three times (1969, ’73, ’75) and Dwight Gooden won in 1985.
The award caps an eventful year for Dickey, who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in January, published a memoir during spring training that included detailing sexual abuse he allegedly suffered as a child, tossed a franchise record 32 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings during the first half and made his first All-Star team.
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WRITTEN BY Adam Rubin | ESPNNewYork.com & FULL STORY HERE
