There hasn’t been much said about former ace Matt Harvey since the right-hander became a free agent after last season. But he did draw somewhat recent interest from the Blue Jays, with whom he tried out “several weeks” back, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network on this week’s Big Time Baseball podcast. Although the Jays “seriously” considered signing the longtime starter as a reliever, per Heyman, they ultimately passed.
This is the first time Harvey, once an All-Star and a high-profile Met, has come up on MLBTR’s pages since last August. The Dark Knight is one of the most accomplished players left in free agency, but injuries have helped take a sledgehammer to what once looked like an amazing career in the making. Harvey posted sub-3.00 ERAs in each season from 2013-15, though he got off to a slow start in 2016 and then underwent the dreaded thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. He simply hasn’t been the same since that year.
Dating back to 2017, Harvey has pitched to a 5.89 ERA/5.46 FIP with 6.94 K/9 and 3.31 BB/9 over 307 1/3 innings. He enjoyed something of a bounce-back showing with the Reds after they acquired him from the Mets in 2018, earning an $11MM guarantee with the Angels going into the ensuing campaign. However, Harvey’s production was so poor as a member of the pitching-needy Halos that they cut the cord on him last July. Shortly after that, the soon-to-be 31-year-old Harvey joined the division-rival Athletics on a minor league contract, but he didn’t make it back to the majors with the organization.
Anyone who signs him needs to put him in the pen
Harvey really faded out fast.
NY nite life for the win
TOS 4TW!!!
Read a article in sports illustrated on him awhile back. Seemed like he was in love with himself. I wonder if he’s already blown thru the millions he earned?
I hate speaking on guys personalities because it’s usual based on someone’s opinion and they can differ quite a bit. But that being said I have heard a lot of the same. Some of which is likely related to the rumors towards the end of his time in New York. A lot of reports that he was borderline in denial with where his game was at that point and wasn’t open to any ideas on changes from the pitching staff. If that’s the case maybe if he allowed the right guy to work with him he could find his old form/command. He’s been bad over a long stretch which makes a bounce back seem unlikely but he was really really good and he’s still young.
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The fans of whoever signs him will be treated to some of the longest hit home runs they’ll ever see.
Matt Harvey in 2020: “The Dark Knight Rises” or “Knightfall”?
Could be Knightsend, but I hope not. He really was dominant in his early Met years
The imaginary rabbit from “Harvey”–what you think you see isn’t really there.
DCeased just like his career
He certainly sounds like he is done. Maybe a year or two off will help him heal more and retain a little of what was lost.
I wonder if a safe, competent doctor monitored regimen of HTH and other PED’s would help him? Does it make a case for PEDs to help with recovery from severe injury?
I hear you’re trying out for the Jays, Jimmer!
The rumor going around is that your wrists are looking mighty strong! #scoutseyes
I think he’d excel as a RP. The question is, does he want to be?
What choice does he have! To think he thought he was all that and then some, was looking at leaving the Mets as soon as he could hit free agency so he can cash out, gee now he can’t even find a job. Karma
Jays didn’t seem impressed.
The Dork Knight lost his mojo when he pitched too many innings in 2015 after Tommy John.
INJURIES destroyed his career
I agree. Not many people can have TJ surgery and then Anterior capsule surgery almost back to to back and even be able to pitch. Harvey I think needed a good year to rest his body then tryout as a reliever.
Conditioning was an issue with this guy years back. Can’t get by on just talent. That said, would’ve been ok with a minor league deal with Harvey.
Terry Collins took out the Dark Knight. Pitched him until his arm fell off. He also took out Johan, threw 451 pitches for the no no with Mets
i agree
451. Wow. That’s a lot. Johan could have said no. And Harvey’s second injury was not due to pitching after tommy john. Harvey was and is an ego maniac, who ended up getting sucked into the strawberry/gooden wormhole and enjoyed the parties and alcohol and powder more than he loved pitching. He wouldn’t take coaches advice and wouldn’t go in the pen when needed or down to the minors to figure things out. I will enjoy watching him play for the Long Island ducks because he won’t ever get higher ip again than that. Useless waste of talent.
Terry Collins was Bane.
451?
It is as if the Internet was never invented.
The box score is easily found—5/7/13, Met vs White Sox, 105 pitches over 9 IP. What was posted before wasn’t even a typo.
Johan threw 134 pitches for his no hitter.
Said this on the Mets board and they cried and begged for verification
Matt Harvey is a or was at least a big time Cocaine guy. He partied evenings before games he was to pitch
Injuries and coke destroyed a promising career
He is a waste
Gooden pitched just fine high on coke
How long did that last??
Oh, about 200 wins.
Terrible ownership, nite life, injuries make life difficult
He is done as a starter. He has lost some of his effectiveness for sure. If he can throw two of his pitches in mid 90’s he could be an effective RP.
Problem with Harvey is he was always a thrower. Take a year off, learn to PITCH, with his 2 seamer circle change and curve, he could be a very effective reliever. A head case. This is coming from a mets fan who watched every game he started in a mets uni.
Good point. When Harvey threw a fastball 98mph, it was simply going by people. But when you throw a 92 mph fastball down the plate people will crush it.
Again, the term “ace.” The guy won 44 games in his career, his most wins in a season was 13, he never made 30 starts a season or pitched 200 innings, all while only once finishing prominently in Cy Young voting. Harvey was dominant for a brief third of his brief career – not an ace. Harvey’s ego played a big role in limiting his trajectory.
2013 and 2015 he pitched like an ace. And then it was all over. He ate, skipped training, got injured, had other rumored issues and wasted what could have been a very good career.
He had thoracic outlet syndrome. That’s what detailed his career. Look up pitchers who have had Thoracic outlet and tell me what you find. Nothing to do with being fat that’s laughable.
In the past, even guys where they are in their career like Harvey wouldn’t give Toronto a shot. Desperate for a job or not I like hearing the Jays getting access to auditions they maybe didn’t have before.
While Degrom was getting to the Gym at 5am Harvey was just getting in from the nightclub
Plain an simple
I don’t think any team is going to hand out one year contracts at this point
Didn’t do himself any favors off the field. Didn’t throw a pitch for a year and a half, then threw over 200 innings ( inc. playoffs ) the following year. Unprecedented. Might still have a career if he was shut down in August 2015 as recommended. Mets did their part to ruin his career.
Someone will take a flyer on him
Any team who saw him pitch with the Angels will know not to touch him. I didn’t know about the partying and ego that folks are talking about. All I know is he stunk for us.
Boras destroyed his career
Matt Harvey is most responsible for Matt Harvey.
Boras was the first to come out publicly and recommend Harvey be shut down, in the summer of 2015. Oh what could have been perhaps.
Maybe Qualcomm can bail him out?
I don’t like the guy at all, but he risked his career for Mets and now he appears done. Strasburg and the Nats took a lot of heat for quitting during a pennant run and now he’s got a WS ring and a fat contract. It doesn’t pay (really the wrong word here) to put it on the line. You won’t be remembered for trying to be a hero.
Glad this is no longer being tagged to the Mets feed.
Former Ace? Former promising young pitcher is more like it. Ten career WAR, one CG, one time all star. To be fair, he had rotten luck
Angels are one of the worse teams at signing big time goats. It may be because their owner is involved. Albert, Justin, Wilson, Hamilton, Cozart and the faded knight are a few to mention that where ignorent Moreno moves.
Don’t forget Kelvim Escobar’s second contract with the Angels or giving Steve Finley $14 million at age 40 only to trade him the next winter and sign Gary Matthews Jr. Whom they signed to a $50 million dollar deal only to sign Torii Hunter (who they outbid the White Sox by $40 million) the very next winter. When Arte goes on a spending bender the Angels seem to get hosed.
dang that’s right Rsox. You said it, Moreno’s spending bender’s
They’ll probably trade for Chris Davis now that’s he’s having a ‘turn around’ lol
Iknowmorebaseball – “where ignorent” = “were ignorant”
If you’re going to call someone ignorant, you should make sure you spell it correctly. Otherwise it makes you sound ignorant.
The Dark Knight is now Alfred.
Nobody wants him , Eppler probably will re sign him for big bucks. Way over paying for pitching no other team wants is his MO.
The Long Island Ducks need pitching?
This guy is the classic case of “the fans do not know what is best for the team“. Too bad for him he used to have a manager who did Soli what the fans told him to do.
I always thought the Mets should have traded Harvey right after they lost the World Series in 2015. Remember, he was on an innings limit and Scott Boras was determined the Mets handle the Dark Knight with care. And Harvey didn’t do anything to dissuade the Mets from the stance that he was going to be a team player.
If the Mets had traded Harvey after that World Series they could have set themselves up for a huge haul and rid themselves of a headache and soon to be worthless player.
I remember all the Mets/Cubs rumors about how the teams could lock up for a trade where Mets give up the pitcher and Cubs the hitter. After the 2015 WS, it was floated how a Harvey for Bryant trade would be fair but too risky for either team to make. Imagine had that happened.
He’d be perfect to turn into a closer type reliever.. still throws hard
I agree. Even when he last struggled in Flushing, he was able to occasionally rev up his FB to 96 mph. That paired with his slider could have probably made him a solid if not dominate RP.
If he was smart he would have stayed on the Reds. There he seemed to have gotten back on track but got greedy and went somewhere else for more money. Common sense would have told you stay the same if things were going good don’t change a thing. But of course he got cocky and conceited and felt that he was worth more and took a chance going with the angels where they released him immediately