Stuck Between a Dickey and a Hard Place

I'm torn.  I've been a Mets fan since Joe Torre was the team's manager and in three-plus decades, I can't remember having a quandary such as this one.  My dilemma involves R.A. Dickey.  Do I want him to be a Met in 2013 or do I want him to be traded for a major league-ready prospect or two?  It's not a decision I would want to make.

Like he has with mostly every other Mets fan, R.A. Dickey has grown on me.  He went from a pitcher whose name was made fun of in every other tweet or blog post (I guess some habits are hard to break) to the best pitcher in the National League in just three seasons.  Needless to say, I look forward to every R.A. Dickey start.

That being said, Dickey's value is higher than anyone ever thought it would be.  One recent trade situation had the Red Sox sending their top two prospects, Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley, to the Mets for the 38-year-old knuckleballer.  Dickey's name has also been connected to the Dodgers and Royals.

Just like the Mets were able to pry top pitching prospect Zack Wheeler away from the Giants in the Carlos Beltran trade, they have to get top value for Dickey in any trade.  And since we're talking about the current National League Cy Young Award winner, they should have no problem getting a top talent or two.

But who would replace Dickey in the rotation?  Johan Santana is still a question mark.  Zack Wheeler is still months away from being major league ready.  Matt Harvey has ten games of big league experience.  Dillon Gee is coming off a season-ending injury.  Mike Pelfrey was shown the front door.  And therein lies the dilemma.

If R.A. Dickey is traded, the Mets have no one to step into his spot in the rotation come April 1.  The fans would also never get to hear Howie Rose utter these words on Opening Day:

"Ladies and gentlemen, your 2012 National League Cy Young Award winner, R.A. Dickey!"

Alas, trading Dickey would allow the Mets to get younger and continue to build a team around David Wright, even if this Mets blogger would love to see Dickey play out the remaining years of his major league career in Flushing.

The Mets would have an above-average pitching staff if they decided to keep Dickey.  But they would have to find another way to acquire top young talent.  Similarly, their rotation would have a gaping hole if they decided to trade Dickey, but the team would be bolstered by the influx of major league-ready prospects.

So which one do I want?  Do I want Dickey all for my own?  Or do I want Sandy Alderson to deal our ace for a potential royal flush of young talent?  I have no idea what's in the cards for R.A. Dickey.  All I know is that as a fan, I'm stuck between a Dickey and a hard place.  And I'm not sure I'm going to be satisfied with whatever ends up happening.