Mets designate Matt Harvey for assignment after horrible start to 2018
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Matt Harvey’s time with the New York Mets is about to end. The team announced he has been designated for assignment, the first step toward his release.
After weeks of poor performance and some self destruction, the New York Mets finally cut ties with former ace Matt Harvey.
Not long after being demoted to the bullpen, New York’s Dark Knight was asked to spend some time in the minors.
He refused.
While he did have the right to refuse, but this was not the answer the team was hoping for.
As a result, Sandy Alderson announced that Harvey will be designated for assignment tomorrow.
This means the Mets will have seven days to make a decision on what to do with Harvey. They must either trade or release him.
BREAKING: The Mets have requested that Matt Harvey agree to a minor league assignment. He refused to accept, and will be DFA'd.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) May 4, 2018
The announcement comes after Harvey pitched to a 10.50 ERA through four outings out of the bullpen. He pitched just one clean outing since the demotion, giving up at least one run in three outings, and five against the Braves.
When the season first began, it looked as though Harvey may have turned a corner. He had a decent Spring Training and in his first outing of the regular season, he gave up just one hit and one walk over five scoreless innings against the Cardinals.
Everything went downhill from there. He gave up at least four runs in each of his next three starts and the rest was history.
It was a roller coaster of a ride for Harvey during his six big league seasons with the team. Combined between 2012 and 2013, he posted a 2.39 ERA with an All-Star appearance and a top-five Cy Young finish under his belt.
He missed all of 2014 due to Tommy John surgery and then picked up right back where he left off. In 2015 he posted a 2.71 ERA over more than 180 innings.
This was less than three full years ago, and Harvey was still one of the best pitchers in baseball. Since then, injuries and a loss of talent began to tarnish his name. In each of the last two seasons, he failed to reach 100 innings pitched or keep his ERA below 4.50.
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Right now, Harvey is a mess, and honestly, he might not even become a mediocre pitcher again. Still, even with the past two and a half horrible seasons, Harvey is leaving us with an overall good career.