Mets rumors: R.A. Dickey or Jon Niese?

The New York Mets had a chance to get a similar trade package to the one they received for R.A. Dickey if they would have instead shipped Jon Niese to the Toronto Blue Jays, according to Andy Martino of The New York Daily News.

When Martino says similar, he means the deal still would have involved top prospects Travis D'Arnaud and Noah Syndergaard. Two people with direct knowledge of the December trade told Martino that Toronto has "loved Niese for years." The sources added that the Blue Jays "absolutely would have" sent New York the same package they got for Dickey.

Prior to the trade, Dickey was set to earn $5 million in 2013, which at the time was the final year of his contract. He and the Blue Jays went on to agree to a two-year, $25 million extension.

While Dickey was a 20-game winner in 2012, earning him the National League Cy Young Award, Niese also turned in a career year. He maintained a 3.40 ERA with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3.16 over 30 starts.

At 26, the right-hander is 12 years younger than Dickey, and he signed a team-friendly extension last spring. That deal guarantees the Mets team control over Niese though 2016, while they hold $10 and $11 million options for ‘17 and '18.

Beyond D'Arnaud and Syndergaard, the Blue Jays also sent Wuilmer Becerra and John Buck to the Blue Jays in exchange for Dickey, Mike Nickeas and Josh Thole.

Did New York ship out the right pitcher?