Appreciating The Rarest Pitch

Okay, so technically it's not the rarest pitch. For the moment, there are still more knuckleballs than screwballs, and many more knuckleballs than Eephii.

But there are times when you wonder if you're about to see your last knuckleball. Especially when R.A. Dickey's manager won't even let him finish the fifth inning with a big lead. So what happens in Game 4 against the Royals? The Toronto Star's Rosie DiManno:

Of course it's been this way for a while. For a spell, Wakefield was the only major leaguer, and the minors were terribly thin, too. The good news is that Boston's Wright is only 31, and has pitched well enough, both in the minors and majors, over the last couple of years that he should keep getting chances even in the event of the odd rough patch.

The other good news is that Dickey, while hardly a Cy Young candidate any more -- his knuckleball just isn't angry like it used to be -- he's still a perfectly viable No. 4 starter for a good team. The Blue Jays have a $12 million option for next season, which is actually $11 million because there's also a $1 million buyout. And Dickey's worth $11 million, if only because he's probably going to make 30 starts.

If the Blue Jays don't bring him back, he'll still pitch somewhere, unless he's unwilling to take a pay cut. And he seems like the sort of guy who will pitch as long as someone gives him a uniform.

Here's hoping, anyway. Because when he's gone, he will be missed.