Keidel: For Their Sake, Mets Better Hope Harvey Is Better Than This
By Jason Keidel
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If you told fans back in spring training that Matt Harvey would be the Mets' fourth-best starter and that Jacob deGrom would have missed a few starts heading into early May, the assumption would be the club would find itself in Yankees territory -- the bottom rungs of the division.
The good news appeared to be that Harvey had increased his strikeout total in each of his first five starts. The bad news was he started at two and got up to seven. Then on Tuesday against lowly Atlanta he managed just four over 5 2/3 mostly uninspired innings in an eventual 3-0 loss.
There are likely a myriad of reasons for Harvey's slow start, from poor mechanics to the gloomy weather we've endured. But hitters have rattled him to the tune of a .311 batting average, which is 46th in the National League, according to SNY.
With Tuesday's defeat, Harvey dropped to 2-4 and looks more like the Joker than the Dark Knight. The young right-hander has surrendered twice as many runs as anyone in the rotation.
Harvey is indeed the staff leader -- in hits allowed (42), earned runs (18), home runs (3), walks (11), WHIP (1.56), and ERA (4.76).
The Braves were slapping singles and doubles all over the place, something you wouldn't expect against someone of Harvey's ability. What you would expect is for him to toy with cellar-dwelling Atlanta, a team that is bordering on historically bad to start the season.
But, for whatever reason, it didn't happen.
The Mets still entered the game at 16-8 and suffered only their second defeat in their last 11 games. They're still 14-4 since manager Terry Collins tapped his right arm and used Jeurys Familia for five outs, but they likely won't contend for a pennant should the crack widen in the Dark Knight's mask.
Harvey haters may see this as a confluence of circumstances, a karmic tax for all the hype and self-indulgence that normally befalls someone more accomplished than this particular pitcher is. Some surely see Harvey as a media contrivance, anointed and crowned before he earned the throne as alpha male of Gotham.
Maybe. Harvey just doesn't look like, well, Harvey. His fastball too often tops out at 93 mph, rather than the sizzling heat that catapulted him to instant stardom, which featured his menacing moniker beaming from the marque, and visage splashed across the cover of Sports Illustrated. Harvey's turn in the rotation once morphed into a local baseball holiday, but not so much these days.
Still, keep your palm far from the panic button. Harvey just happens to be scuffling, in stark contrast to the rest of the Mets' glittering rotation. If he were anyone but who he is -- not only the Dark Knight on the diamond but playboy Bruce Wayne away from the field, never met a Page Six he didn't adore -- we'd write these six starts off to rust or rain or whatever.
Maybe Harvey should focus more on self-improvement. It's hard enough to throw a baseball with the skill and will necessary to win in MLB, much less NYC.
Harvey has to deal with the twin burdens of pitching on a team with title hopes, and in America's media vortex. But he asked for this. And it's time for the Dark Knight to resemble a superhero again.
Follow Jason on Twitter at @JasonKeidel
