Something similar came up last week, but I assume it’ll keep coming up until Dickey’s situation is resolved. And as long as it keeps coming up, I might as well keep repeating myself.

SI think it will work out in the Mets’ best interests to trade Dickey this offseason — especially if it looks like the two sides are far apart in extension talks — if they can get at least a promising, cost-controlled young outfielder in return. I mentioned Peter Bourjos as a potential target a month ago, and though I don’t think Bourjos alone should be enough to get it done, I do think he’d be as good a fit as any of the reasonable possibilities I’ve seen floated: He’s young, he bats right-handed, he plays exceptional defense, he hit well in his one season of full-time play in 2011, and he’s under team control through the next four seasons.

Predictably, many people speculating about possible Dickey trades don’t seem to consider that teams far from contention might not want to trade away all their best prospects for a 38-year-old signed to a one-year deal. Rampant, reckless trade talk is an unavoidable part of the baseball offseason and there’s no reason not to have fun with it, but it’s always more interesting when you figure out the needs of the team that’s not the one you root for. Which is to say, I don’t think the Royals are going to trade Wil Myers and Bubba Starling for one year’s worth of Dickey.

I think I’m a bit more bullish on Thole than most Mets fans. He suffered an awful season at the plate in 2012, but it seems at least a bit suspicious that his offense fell apart immediately after he returned from his concussion. If he can recover, I think he’ll be acceptable — if never quite good. When he’s right, he gets on base a bit, which in a catcher is enough to make up for a bunch of other inadequacies. And he hits left-handed, which makes it far easier for the club to find a viable platoon partner in the Kelly Shoppach/Ronny Paulino mold. I think, ideally, the Mets find a right-handed hitting complement who can play a bit more often than just against lefties, and Thole gets about 90-100 starts in 2013 to show that his 2012 was a fluke.

What is it you think J.P. Ricciardi does?

Dude, were you not on the Internet yesterday? YOU MISSED THE PARTY!

He should stay there. His UZR does not look pretty, but I’m not sure a single year’s worth of UZR data is more valuable than empirical evidence. And by the end of the year, Murph looked downright tolerable at second base.

Alternately, they can move him back to left field for LOLs.

Movement: Spearheaded. You know, I’ve been looking for an excuse to get in touch with Citi Field’s executive chef. How do I go about getting this done? Do I just point out how great it would be to have delicious banh mi available in the Taste of the Citi area, or do I accentuate the negative and try to guilt them into it somehow? Why are the classless Mets ignoring thousands of Vietnamese living in Queens?