Jay Bruce has been around long enough to remember the flashes of brilliance from Matt Harvey's right arm, back when Harvey earned the nickname "The Dark Knight," was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated with that superhero moniker and blew away hitters at will.
"I faced Matt Harvey before his injuries, and he was something else, man," Bruce, the Mets’ right fielder, said Tuesday afternoon, referring to his Reds playing days, circa 2013. That was when Harvey was dominating opposing batters en route to starting for the National League in the All-Star Game at Citi Field that summer.
But as Bruce alluded to, the injury bug hit Harvey later in 2013, and several times over the next four years, limiting Harvey to a total of 64 starts between 2015 and 2017. He had Tommy John surgery in October 2013, missed all of 2014, but returned to pitch well in 2015 and was on the mound in the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series. The Mets were holding a 2-0 lead, and Harvey famously talked then-manager Terry Collins into staying in the game to face the heart of the Royals' batting order.
Oops. Every Mets fan knows how that decision ended.
Matt Harvey has had his share of troubles in recent years, but the right-hander may be primed for a bounce-back season.
(Matt York/AP)Harvey, who made his first start of 2018 Tuesday against the Phillies, had surgery to address Thoracic Outlet Syndrome in 2016, and then had an injury-riddled 2017 season, compounded by the three-game suspension team general manager Sandy Alderson dropped on Harvey in early May after the right-hander was out partying Friday night, and then failed to show up at Citi Field for a Saturday game. Harvey apologized to his teammates after that embarrassing episode, and catcher Travis d'Arnaud said Tuesday that the three-game suspension was "possibly" a wake-up call for Harvey.
"I'm going to say it's more (Harvey's) demeanor out there that is a lot different than it was last year. You can just see it in his eye," said d'Arnaud, referring to what he saw in Harvey during the just-concluded spring training. "Yeah, he's got a chip on his shoulder, absolutely. With what happened last year, obviously not getting the numbers he wanted, he knows what kind of pitcher he is, and he's out here to show everybody and remind everybody what kind of pitcher he is."
Bruce was still with the Mets last year when Harvey issued his team apology, and Bruce said that professional hiccup by Harvey "started and ended there."
Matt Harvey's teammates are putting his off-the-field transgressions behind them.
(Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)"Last year was a professional situation where he broke rules and got reprimanded for it. That's just the bottom line. There (weren't) any hard feelings from anyone. It's just part of the game. You have a job. You have to follow rules or else things happen. That's definitely behind us," said Bruce. "I'm just excited for Matt to have a healthy season and feel like he's back in control of his body and ready to go for this year."
New Mets manager Mickey Callaway called Harvey "a model citizen" and added that the pitcher "worked his tail off" in spring training, "and put himself in a position to go out there (Tuesday against the Phillies) and pitch a real good game for us."
Maybe it's a new, improved Dark Knight personality, one not so consumed with the Gotham nightlife or celebrity glow or trying to emulate former Yankee captain Derek Jeter, as Harvey stated in a cringe-worthy 2013 Men's Journal interview: "I mean, first off, let's just look at the women he's dated," Harvey said then. "That's where I want to be."
Another year removed from TOS surgery, Matt Harvey is feeling more confident on the mound.
(Kathy Willens/AP)But d'Arnaud said Harvey is being "an awesome teammate now," and that the pitcher seems to be "really locked in." Bruce added that the team is "here to support him" and "get the best out of him both on and off the field."
This is, of course, Harvey's last season before he joins an elite class of free agents, headed by Bryce Harper and Manny Machado. Will he be in a Mets uniform after 2018? There's a season to play first, and a healthy Harvey racking up wins will quickly erase past bozo off-the-field behavior as well as the unfortunate string of injuries that have felled Harvey.
"In a free agency year, it's exciting for (Harvey) to go out there and show the world, 'This is me. Last year was just a fluke. I'm going to go out there and be the old Matt Harvey,'" Mets reliever Paul Sewald said.
In with the old, then. It would be a welcome change.