R.A. Dickey
From BR Bullpen
Robert Allen Dickey
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 3", Weight 205 lb.
- School University of Tennessee
- Debut April 22, 2001
- Born October 29, 1974 in Nashville, TN USA
[edit] Biographical Information
R.A. Dickey was a star pitcher at the University of Tennessee and won a bronze medal for the United States at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He was 1-0 with a 2.51 ERA as Team USA's ace in the 1994 Baseball World Cup but walked 8 in 14 1/3 IP.
After they drafted Dickey in the first round of the 1996 amateur draft, the Texas Rangers' medical staff discovered that he was missing a crucial tendon in his throwing elbow, and that it was unexplainable that he could pitch at any level with such a condition. They offered him only a nominal contract, fully expecting that he would break down in short order. However, his arm held up and he managed to reach the major leagues in 2001. He was a regular member of the team's pitching staff in 2003 and 2004 as a swingman, although he never managed to post an ERA under 5.00. He began to experiment with throwing a knuckleball after that. He made the Rangers' staff at the beginning of 2006 but in his sole appearance on the mound on April 6, he gave up 6 home runs, one less than Charlie Sweeney's record, to earn a ticket back to AAA.
Dickey made the 2007 Pacific Coast League All-Star team as the top right-handed starting pitcher. He went 13-6, 3.72, in 31 games for the Nashville Sounds during the season and was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 2007 Rule V Draft. He returned to the major leagues on April 14, pitching a game in relief for the Mariners that day before making a losing start in place of Erik Bedard against the Los Angeles Angels on April 18. He was sent back to the Tacoma Rainiers on April 22 when J.J. Putz came off the disabled list.
Dickey became the 5th major league pitcher to throw four wild pitches in one inning, when he did so on August 17, 2008; two of the pitches scored runners in a 11-8 loss to Minnesota. Kenji Johjima also had a passed ball on one of Dickey's knuckleballs.
