Matt Harvey has always been surrounded by an aura of mystery. The highs and lows have garnered the attention, but beneath it, all might be a man with a plan.
Matt Harvey, the Mets, his teammates, and nearly everyone connected to baseball could not have imagined what they were witnessing. The Last Hurrah of a premier starting pitcher when Terry Collins handed Harvey the ball to pitch the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series with a lead in hand.
Baseball fans recall it was Matt Harvey, The Dark Knight, who had visibly lobbied Collins in the Mets dugout to stay in the game. Against his better judgment, Collins would say later, Harvey won the battle but lost the war as the Cubs rallied to take the title.
Matt Harvey: Into The Abyss
From there, Matt Harvey was hit with a series of injuries and ensuing rehab setbacks. The first injury and probably the most serious as both a life and career threat occurred only months after that career game in July 2016.
Sports Illustrated reported at the time, testing revealed symptoms consistent with thoracic outlet syndrome.
This condition results from excess pressure on the nerves or blood vessels between the rib cage and collarbone that can cause pain in the shoulder and neck.
Harvey’s agent, ScottBoras, told ESPN the thoracic outlet syndrome is the reason Harvey has underperformed this season.
Still, from this point on, Harvey never again rose to the level he was pitching at before the injury.
Matt Harvey: On The Road Again…
Harvey Walking The Narrow Line
Still, a seemingly washed-up Felix Hernandez (34) was able to sign a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves. Ubaldo Jimenez, Edinson Vólquez, and Edwin Jackson – all of whom at 36 are five years older than Harvey – signed minor league deals giving them the opportunity to continue their career.
Why not Matt Harvey? I’m just asking.
And let’s remember, Harvey is represented by the most high-profile player rep in the industry, which might very well be where the answer lies. Scott Boras is playing a game of check and raise of Texas Hold-Em Poker.
In Scott Boras, Matt Harvey Trusts
Making it a wait and see game of sorts in which Boras tells Matt Harvey – your job is to stay in shape to be ready when I call you. Let the dust sort things out when teams get back together again, and then we’ll make our move when Jimenez, Volquez, and the rest have flamed out.
Scott Boras is the ultimate strategist, and players by, and large have long relied on his advice, and the man delivers the goods.
Still, for Matt Harvey, this is the ultimate test for a person used to be on the frontlines, engineering self-serving headlines, and snaring a paragraph on Page Six of the New York Post.
That Boras has been able to harness the heretofore self-propelled disaster waiting to happen is an achievement worthy of applause for both Harvey and Boras.
Nevertheless, there’s something wrong with major league baseball in the 21st Century if Matt Harvey is not given the opportunity to wear a big-league uniform in 2020.
After that, it’s up to the man himself.
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
