He pitched a gem AT tampa last year with the roof closed.

"No humidity,no wind=less movement"

Wind isn't what makes the ball move, air does.

Corect me if I'm wrong -- but doesn't Toronto have retractable roof? So maybe only cold April/ Sept gms & possible rain will have roof closed??

They could tailor his rotation around away games if necessary. He can pitch on 3 days rest to get an extra start, or take an extra day off, and it wouldnt hurt him. Toronto has a very solid rotation now, and it does not hinge on Dickey.

His ERA indoors for the past three seasons is 1.73. That's great for Toronto.

The bad news is our record in his starts for the past three seasons is 53-39. When anyone else starts it's 177-217.

Wind only helps a knuckler when it is in his face not so much at his back so only 50/50 and a rainy day hurts a knuckleball too. Remember with too much humidity the ball slips and doesn't knuckle, Dickey got lit up by the Braves on a drizzly day in Atlanta.

Wind hurts a knuckler. For evidence, just look at how he gets lit up virtually every year in Spring Training. The movement come due to more resistance being created in a ball that doesn't spin. The rain and wind cause the ball to rotate just a little more on the way to the plate and thus decreases movement. Further evidence of this was shown in Dickey's start in Cincy last year where the construction of the stadium next to a major river causes a jet stream that runs from right behind the plate out to RF. Dickey lost the ability to throw a knuckler that rotates less than once before reaching the plate and it ended up in a start where he threw more passed balls by Thole than usual and gave up some mammoth home runs.

Dickey also uses ST to try new stuff. Like most pitchers who are guaranteed a spot in the rotation, ST are 100% meaningless. Two years ago, Dickey used ST to develop a slow knuckle, and this past ST he was working on an in between knuckle. He would throw it every pitch to every batter. The humidity and condidtions may have affected him, but it is more like he has two innings to work on live batting and he was trying things out, %^$^ the consequences because it does not matter.

he'll do great. they can beef up humidity if they want. doesnt really matter. he has phenomenal numbers indoors.

wind has literally nothing to do with his effectiveness

They are going to pump in small amounts of helium.

It'll be like the chipmunks album.

His first spring training here when he was here on a minor league contract showed him getting lit up as well. The high Arizona winds make his knuckler almost useless. The wind causes it to rotate on its way to the plate and reduces the movement that the friction between the non-rotating ball and the air would create.

Wakefield in ST was the same as well as in windy conditions.

No need to worry.

He'll be the first pitcher to win back to back CY awards in both NL and AL.

That'll go along nicely with his WS ring he gets too.

His first ST on the Mets was the first time he was going as a knuckleballer first. ST is about testing and perfecting your stuff. Who cares if you get knocked around, as long as you get better. He was not pitching to make the team in April, so his numbers were still meaningless.

You are right that ST numbers are meaningless. It took that first ST of seeing him get lit up like a menorah for the Megs to really learn about the knuckleball. I even called it that first year that Dickey would be up by midseason and would turn into a major contributor. I had paid attention to the way weather effects a knuckler. As long as we have ST in Arizona, the wind will decrease any break on pitches that rely on friction.