Mets rumors: R.A. Dickey extension offer raised to 2 years, $20 million

The New York Mets and knuckleballer R.A. Dickey may finally be making progress on contract extension talks that have been in a stalemate for weeks, reports Andy Martino of the NY Daily News:

Contract negotiations between the Mets and R.A. Dickey, stuck last week in a stalemate, have inched toward meaningful progress in the past 24 hours.

Mets sources told the Daily News late Monday that the team, while still refusing to rule out a trade, was in the process of increasing its offer to the Cy Young Award winner to approximately three years, $25 million.

The proposed deal would pay Dickey $10 million for both the 2014 and 2015 seasons, with the remaining $5 million coming from his standing contract for the 2013 season. While reports of a similar offer surfaced last week, Martino's sources in the Mets' organization insist that this is the biggest offer the club has put on the table thus far.

Dickey is believed to be asking for a two-year, $26 million extension ($31 million total with the 2013 contract), which puts the two sides at a difference of $6 million. Prior to the Mets' newest offer, the two sides were reportedly apart by $10 million.

The $4 million bump in the Mets' offer to Dickey is a sign of progress, but is does not rule out the possibility that Dickey will be traded in the end. Having lost out on the Zack Greinke sweepstakes, the Rangers could re-open talks of a trade for the knuckleballer.