Before, it was Diana Ross and the Supremes, as well as Gladys Knight and the Pips, and now it’s Matt Harvey and the Mets. Please welcome baseball’s newest diva.
As the team from Queens embarks on its first postseason berth since 2006, their star pitching performer may not be on the October stage as long as his fans, his manager or general manager would prefer.
The roots of this disconnect stretch back to spring training, when Harvey was returning to the mound after missing an entire year due to Tommy John Surgery. While the Mets were heavily involved in monitoring the progress of their young pitching stud, there had been no official mention of an innings restriction.
Leave it to agent Scott Boras to drop the hammer earlier this month. He noted a “hard cap” of 180 innings for Harvey – who at the time had tallied 166.1– before he shuts it down for good. A thought that had simmered around the Mets front office for five months (but had never materialized) officially blew up.
Once Boras lit the fuse, Harvey was scheduled to speak to the media the next day. Instead of putting out the fire, he fanned the flames – regularly telling reporters that he was focused on his next start against Washington.
With that, he singlehandedly placed his reputation and image on a tee for the public and New York media members alike to take a hefty swing.
To continue reading this article by Brian Wright at The Sports Daily, click here.
