Winter meetings, Day 1: What's next for Mets?

The Mets, owned by Michigan alum Fred Wilpon, already made public their biggest announcement of the offseason, and one of the biggest in their history: They’re keeping third baseman David Wright, the face of the franchise, having agreed to a club-record $138 million extension.

That, no doubt, was their top priority entering the offseason.

A distant second? Resolving the R.A. Dickey situation.

That could be by way of a trade or a contract extension, though with the money committed to Wright, a trade sure seems the most logical move now.

It just makes too much sense.

Dickey just won the Cy Young Award, after going 20-6. That makes him supremely marketable. Yes, he sure has come a long way since he was pitching batting practice to the Tigers in 2006. But Dickey also is 38, which makes him easy to part with, considering his best days — even if he does throw the knows-no-age knuckleball — most likely are in the past.

The Mets’ needs, fresh off a 74-88 year, are plentiful, starting with catcher and outfield. They don’t have a legimate starting outfielder at any position.

They’re not interested in spending mucho bucks on the free-agent market, plus a trade — especially a rare one involving a defending Cy Young winner — could accomplish more than one of their many needs. So nobody would be surprised if such a deal went down this week, here in Nasvhille.

Dickey is a plenty-affordable alternative to ballclubs not wanting to break the bank on guys like Kyle Lohse or Edwin Jackson, who never have won a Cy Young and never will.

The Royals, who still want to upgrade the rotation — like Joan Rivers, one face lift isn’t enough — should be interested. The Indians should be in the same boat. So might the Nationals, or perhaps the Brewers.

Whoever gets Dickey will owe the right-hander $5 million for 2013, before he becomes a free agent next offseason.