Mets Warn Dickey Contract Could Be Voided If He Is Hurt Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro

Dickey planned climb in large part to raise money for Bombay Teen Challenge charity

Mets P R.A. Dickey's plan to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro next month "caused some consternation" in the team's front office, as the Mets a few months ago sent Dickey's agent a letter "warning him that they reserve the right to void the remaining year on his contract if he is injured on the mountain," according to Brian Costa of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Mets GM Sandy Alderson said, "If we thought it was a good idea, we wouldn't have sent the letter." But Dickey said, "I don't think there's really any lethal risk to doing it." He planned the climb "in large part to raise money and awareness for a charity, Bombay Teen Challenge, which helps victims of sex trafficking in India." He landed sponsorships from "several companies." North Face and Reebok "will provide clothing, Panasonic will donate cameras and a laptop and a company called Inmarsat will provide a mobile satellite so Dickey can connect to the internet on the mountain" (WSJ.com, 12/27). In N.Y., Peter Botte cited a source as confirming that the Mets "sent a 'procedural' letter to agent Bo McKinniss 'just to cover themselves legally' over the summer, when the knuckleballer first began publicly discussing the excursion" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 12/28).