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Buster Olney of ESPN reports that the Mets have increased their contract-extension offer to R.A. Dickey. While Olney doesn't report any specifics regarding the amount of money offered to Dickey in the Mets' latest proposal, he says the team was surprised by the one-year, $12 million deal that Andy Pettitte recently signed with the Yankees.
He goes on to ask what Dickey is really worth if the Yankees were willing to pay Pettitte, who turn 41 in June, as much as they did. It's not quite an apples-to-apples comparison, though, as Pettitte was eligible for free agency this winter, while the Mets still control Dickey for 2013. Throw in the fact that the Yankees usually pay above and beyond the market value of their long-tenured players — even those who played in Houston for a few years before coming back — and Pettitte's situation is not the same as Dickey's.
That said, Dickey is reportedly willing to accept a two-year extension on top of his 2013 option, which seems like something the Mets should reasonably be able to accomplish. If you were Sandy Alderson, what's the maximum amount of money you'd guarantee to Dickey for 2014 and 2015?