PORT ST. LUCIE — R.A. Dickey climbed Mount Kilimanjaro last month and yesterday arrived at the base of Everest.
The veteran knuckleballer sees a difficult NL East and realizes plenty will have to go right for the Mets to have a shot at the postseason.
Individual improvement might be the Mets’ best hope.
“You never know from year to year how big of a step a guy has taken,” Dickey said on reporting day for pitchers and catchers at the Mets’ spring training complex. “The guy to my right [Jon Niese] is going to be a big factor. Johan [Santana] coming back. Is Ike [Davis] healthy?
“We’ve got guys that are right there with their foot in the air. Are they are going to step off the edge or are they going to take a step? We won’t know the answers to those questions for a while, but if a bunch of guys take that next step, all of a sudden I think we’re right in the mix.”
Dickey spent two weeks in January scaling Kilimanjaro — raising about $120,000 for charity. He said he is still in the process of regaining the 10 pounds he lost during the climb.
He returns to a Mets team projected to finish in the NL East basement, after shedding $50 million in payroll while the rest of the division either added big pieces or remained loaded.
But the Mets could also land a big fish of sorts if Santana, who missed all of last season recovering from 2010 shoulder surgery, returns to reclaim his spot atop the rotation.
“I’m not getting my hopes up, but certainly high tide raises all ships,” Dickey said, referring to Santana. “He would bring a caveat to what we’ve got going on here that would really help everybody. I’ve got my fingers crossed, but I don’t want to get too excited, because I know it’s a hard journey from the surgery.”
Dickey, who finished 8-13 with a 3.28 ERA in 2011, enters the final guaranteed season of a two-year deal worth $7.8 million. The Mets hold a $5 million option on him for 2013.
He takes pride in the fact he’s the majors’ lone remaining knuckleballer, after Tim Wakefield last week announced his retirement. Another knuckleballer, Charlie Haeger — whom the Red Sox signed to a minor league contract last summer — will miss the season with an elbow injury.
“I’m sad because I want [Wakefield] around — it’s fun to watch somebody who does what you do,” Dickey said. “In the past he has lent me some things I needed to see, but now, I’ve got to go to the film and watch him pitch instead of seeing him get to throw a bullpen.
“I don’t know if there’s anyone outside of [Haeger] even tinkering with it. It’s fairly lonely. I feel a little bit of loneliness. My hope is someone is going to see the real value in it and want to keep doing it. There’s a lot of adversity that comes with it.”