Mets' Dickey brings slow, steady hand to mound

In the far corner of a happy Mets clubhouse, R.A. Dickey slowly rolled up his left sleeve, like a proud Little Leaguer showing off his war wound. Angel Pagan looked, winced and patted Dickey's belly, and headed for the showers.

This was a man who took one for the team. Whom the baseball gods seemed to hand-deliver as a stark contrast to the people he preceded.

The Mets won their third straight game last night, an 8-0 trouncing of Jamie Moyer and the Phillies, to lift themselves back to .500 at 23-23. And on this night, most of all, they had to thank Dickey, the veteran knuckleballer who shook off a second-inning Ryan Howard line drive to his left (non-pitching) elbow to shut out the dangerous Phillies for six innings before the pain caused him to end his night.

"He wanted to stay out there, which was great," catcher Rod Barajas said. "He thought he had his good stuff. He wanted to compete for us. He gave us exactly what we needed today."

"It became harder every inning, because I could bend it less and less," Dickey said. "But fortunately, I was able to get through six innings."

We're not here to promote Dickey as a great, long-term solution to what ails the Mets' starting rotation. Not likely, and really, if Dickey were more important, then the Mets should've lifted him as soon as he got nailed. Maybe he'll even have to miss time with the elbow injury.

Against the tough Phillies, the 35-year-old knuckleballer came up huge.

Howard's bullet started the second inning, after Dickey had thrown a 1-2-3 first. Out came the Mets' three wise men, as it were - manager Jerry Manuel, pitching coach Dan Warthen and head trainer Ray Ramirez.

"I couldn't feel my hand," Dickey said. "That was a little bit scary. With the second batter [Raul Ibañez], the sensation returned. With the first batter [Jayson Werth], catching the ball was tough."

Howard, Werth and Ibañez loaded the bases with no outs, but Dickey protected his 1-0 edge by inducing Carlos Ruiz to hit into a 1-2-3 double play, pitching around eighth hitter Juan Castro and striking out Moyer. At that point, he took an X-ray, which was negative, and went back at it. He took more tests after he finished.

The Moyer encounter evoked memories of the May 2 Mets-Phillies game at Citizens Bank Park, when Johan Santana issued an RBI walk to Moyer. However, Santana does not represent a Mets problem. Where Dickey stands out best is when you hold him up against Maine and Perez, whom he replaced in the Mets' starting rotation.

Maine now sits on the disabled list, reluctantly, while Perez hangs out in the Mets' bullpen, with no apparent role. The two have made a combined 16 starts, and they lasted six innings or longer in five of those.

It's clear that both Maine and Perez, the darlings of 2006 and 2007, have worn out their teammates not only physically, by requiring so much work of the relievers, but also mentally. Because both were wild and so unpredictable, they lost support in the clubhouse.

You watch Dickey pitch, on the other hand, and you get a different vibe. Of confidence and determination, rather than anxiety and uncertainty. In his two starts, he has allowed two runs in 12 innings, going six innings each time.

Maine and Perez seem to create their own drama. Dickey had drama thrust upon him, and he shrugged it off. The less drama for the Mets right now, the better. They've already hit their quota for the decade.