Robert Allen Dickey, a native of Nashville, Tenn., is a Cy Young Award-winning pitcher who played professionally for 21 years. Dickey prepped at Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville and was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in 1993, but did not sign and instead attended the University of Tennessee.
During his time in Knoxville, Dickey was a three-time All-American and a three-time Academic All-American. Dickey helped lead the Tennessee baseball team to three SEC championships and to the 1995 College Baseball World Series. Dickey was also a member of the U.S. national baseball team for the 1996 Olympic games, receiving a bronze medal.
Dickey was drafted in 1996 by the Texas Rangers and began a professional career that spanned 21 years. Throughout his career, Dickey pitched for Texas, Seattle, Minnesota, the New York Mets, Toronto and Atlanta. In 2012 with the Mets, Dickey’s knuckleball led him to be named as an All-Star and the National League Cy Young Award Winner.
Dickey’s passions move well beyond baseball. He became a New York Times best-selling author after releasing his autobiography, ”Wherever I Wind Up, My quest for Truth, Authenticity, and the Perfect Knuckleball.” Dickey has also been a contributing author to the New York Times, National Geographic, Sports Illustrated and The New Yorker. His other books include ”Throwing Strikes” and ”Knuckleball Ned,” a children’s book.
Besides his hunger for literature, Dickey invested his time on several nonprofit boards including Bombay Teen Challenge, an outreach that helps victims of sex trafficking in Mumbai, India. In January of 2012, R.A. raised $250,000 for the BTC by reaching the peak of Kilimanjaro. Currently, he is on the board of directors for the Nashville Anti-Human Trafficking Coalition.