The tragic story of Gotham’s Dark Knight is that Matt Harvey is still in his 20s.
Who would have guessed that Matt Harvey, the Dark Knight–the savior of the New York–would fall out of the Mets’ rotation before his 30th birthday?
Courtesy: Sports Illustrated
Blame the New York media, blame injuries, blame his drinking problem … those are all valid reasons why the Mets dealt their former ace to Cincinnati for the small price of backup catcher, Devin Mesoraco.
People will remember Matt Harvey as an immature diva with potential that went to waste because he couldn’t handle the New York spotlight.
While the Dark Knight may have vanished when New York needed him most, I choose to remember him for the moments that coined him as New York’s ‘Caped Crusader.’
On July 26, 2012, Johan Santana hit the disabled list–just a month removed from pitching the first no-hitter in Mets’ history. Santana’s replacement was none other than Matt Harvey, the kid from UNC with the untouchable 97 mph fastball and a killer slider.
Harvey burst onto the scene with four scoreless innings. Harvey didn’t look back the rest of the season, either, finishing with a more-than-respectable 2.73 ERA.
But 2013 is when things really got going with Harv. He was almost untouchable with an awesome 2.23 ERA while striking out 191 batters in 178.1 innings.
It was in May of that year when Sports Illustrated nicknamed him. “The Dark Knight Knight of Gotham.” Although silly and overdramatic given (Harvey hadn’t played a full season in the MLB yet), his name would forever be synonymous with Batman. In July, he appeared in ESPN The Magazine’s, The Body, issue.
To put it simply, Harvey was on top of the world.
His career had a major setback in August, though, when he partially tore the UCL in his right elbow, an injury that required Tommy John Surgery. Although he would miss the 2014 season, Harvey finished fourth in the NL CY Young voting–impressive when you think he hadn’t appeared in a game since mid-August.
Harvey reached his pinnacle in 2015. The Mets were looking pretty, pretty good. Jacob deGrom was the reigning NL MVP, Steven Matz and Noah Syndergaard are two of baseball’s top pitching prospects, and Matt Harvey was as hungry as ever, fresh off Tommy John surgery.
On April 25, The Dark Knight rose again. Matt Harvey and the red-hot Mets were on a roll, 13-4 for the season. Harvey was facing Alex Rodriguez with two outs in the bottom of the 9th. Although Harvey had surpassed his 105 pitch count limit set for him by agent Scott Boras, Harvey was able to find enough in the tank to strike out A-Rod with a 98-mph heater.
When Terry Collins came to the mound to pull Harvey (after he gave up a single to Mark Teixeira), Harvey fought tooth-and-nail to finish the game. Collins wasn’t going to let his star pitcher–fresh off Tommy John Surgery–re-injure his elbow in a game that the Mets had won in the 6th inning.
But a message had been sent: Harvey had regained the ultra-competitive edge that made him so scary.
Harvey and the Mets went fast-forward from that night. Harvey and Jacob deGrom dominated, finishing the year with a respective 12 win/2.7 ERA and 14 win/2.54 to lead the Mets to a 90-72 season. And midway through the season, Noah Syndergaard (aka Thor) joined the two aces to form the scariest three-headed monster in MLB.
However, while spirits were high (the Mets were on their way to clinching the National League East), there was drama. Harvey’s agent, Scott Boras, reminded the Mets of the 180-inning limit that the surgeon, Boras, Harvey, and the Mets had agreed upon before the season started.
That limit was surpassed when Harvey pitched 6 ⅔ innings against the Reds in the NL East-clinching game. With several weeks to go in the regular season–and a potentially long postseason looming–would the Mets shut down Harvey?
Would they let Harvey pitch until his arm fell off?
Ultimately, it was Harvey’s decision. And Harvey, being the competitor he is, was not about to let Terry Collins take the ball away from him at the most important stage of his career. No way he was going to watch from the sidelines.
And Harvey didn’t. Harvey dominated the Dodgers, then the Cubs, and lead the Mets’ to the World Series against the Royals.
After starting and getting a no-decision in Game 1, he dominated Game 5, pitching eight innings of one-run ball. Then came the 9th inning. That’s when Harvey’s 2015 ended. A leadoff walk … a game-tying double … and then taken out of the game. The Royals became the champs in extra-innings, winning 7-2.
Maybe Harvey’s ego got in the way. The same confidence and fire in the belly that got him to ‘that moment’ perhaps also ruined his career.
From Opening Day on in 2016, Harvey looked as tired as he had been in the last inning of Game 5 a year before. A noticeable decrease in fastball velocity took away what made him great. His ERA ballooned to 4.86 ERA. Then, just as his agent had warned, Harvey went on the DL and opted for season-ending surgery. It was Thoracic Outlet Syndrome this time, a shoulder injury from which few pitchers bounce back.
2017 was another disaster story. After coming back from surgery, his fastball was average, his slider had lost its bite, and he had a career-low strikeout rate. His ERA was an embarrassing 6.70 ERA.
Courtesy: Page Six
Injuries got in the way. But it wasn’t just injuries. Harvey had a legitimate drinking/partying problem, which came out in a variety of ways.
The Mets had blamed tunnel traffic for Harvey missing a mandatory meeting during the 2015 playoffs, but it was really caused by Harvey drinking the night before. Then, after driving to Los Angeles (to party until 4 a.m. the night before a game in San Diego), Harvey didn’t show up for the game, blaming a migraine. The Mets suspended him for three games, which Harvey had the audacity to appeal.
His embarrassing season was cut short by injury yet again. His joke of a September comeback produced a miserable 11.22 ERA. Things got no better in 2018. He continued to struggle. Harvey’s time in New York was over.
That’s the tragic story of Gotham’s Dark Knight, even though (the strange thing) is that this once-star is still in his 20s.
I’m rooting for Harvey in Cincinnati. A fresh start may be just what he needs.
With the bat signal gone dull in Gotham, all I can say is this: Thanks for the memories, Matt Harvey.
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As of June 15, Harvey is 1-5 for the Reds with a 5.92 ERA and 1.38 WHIP (source: Baseball Reference.com)
