Now that the offseason is in full swing, the speculation of whether the New York Mets should trade Matt Harvey have come full circle.
By David Hong
It makes sense too. With them having all sorts of depth in their rotation filled with bright, young starters, it probably wouldn’t hurt to give up one of their starters for key cog in the lineup.
Out of all the Mets starters, Matt Harvey is the man discussed most frequently.
This is the case despite The Dark Knight possessing the most ace like qualities of the Mets starters. His stuff, poise and demeanor simply cannot be questioned out there on the mound.
The downside, of course, is the drama, and there’s clearly been lots of it with Harvey during the season – especially with Scott Boras being his agent, meaning the likelihood that Harvey could command a big contract when he becomes a free agent after the 2018 season is a definite one.
So is it worth the Mets trading Harvey this offseason? This is the big question of the moment.
Here are the well thought out pros and cons:
Pros For Trading The Dark Knight
Matt Harvey has already established himself as a bonafide star pitcher in baseball. He proved it once again when he won the NL Comeback Player of the Year award after missing the entire 2014 season with Tommy John surgery. Mets fans certainly want Harvey to be a Met his entire career.
However, willhe re-sign with the Mets when he becomes a free agent in 2018?
The signs don’t look too favorable for the Mets. Matt has Scott Boras as his agent and we all know how Boras demands the most cash in all his clients. That was the case when Boras made a big fuss over Harvey’s innings limit in early September, fearing that Matt could get injured if he exceeded his total, which he did, and that Harvey wouldn’t get the mega deal that he could possibly get.
It nearly became ugly in September, and looking at the Mets relationship with Boras and even Harvey at times, the chances of Harvey staying with the Mets long terms appears slimmer. So, it doesn’t help matters that Harvey decided to still stick with Boras as his agent. Boras may have singlehandedly ruined Harvey’s chances of being a Met his entire career.
Alderson would probably not want to sign a huge deal that Harvey could probably command. It’s also important for the Mets to try to re-sign their other young starters like Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard when they enter their contract years which is a little later than Harvey. Harvey will be a free agent before the other starters and as of now it’ll look like he will receive the biggest contract which could be out of the Mets reach.
The Mets should look to trade Harvey while his value is high and they could get value in return instead of letting him go for nothing when he’s a free agent.
Finally, Harvey’s attitude at times leaves a lot to be desired. He’s always craved attention which could get players in trouble at times and while he’s the ultimate competitor, sometimes he may be too much of it, like in Game 5 of the World Series when he aggressively pleaded with manager Terry Collins to leave him in the ninth inning and Collins changed his mind which led to the Royals rallying back to tie it in the ninth and eventually winning the World Series over the Mets.
Then there’s the matter of the innings limit controversy when Harvey said that 180 was the limit, which angered a lot of fans and nearly got them turned against him.
Throughout his time with the Mets, there has been lots of drama surrounding Matt, such as 2014 when he wanted to rehab in NY rather than in Port St Lucie, wanting to come back in a meaningless September stretch and in 2015, his displeasure with the six-man rotation, and the innings limit controversy.
Do the Mets want to keep dealing with the drama surrounding Matt? Dramas are never a good thing in sports. like the New York Yankees have learned with A-Rod over the years.
Cons For Trading The Dark Knight
Matt Harvey is the ultimate ace. Period.
Ever since he burst into the scene in 2013, including starting the All-Star game at Citi Field, he had star written all over him. Add his blazing upper 90s fastball with his secondary pitches, along with his poise and demeanor on the mound, and the man has everything you want in an ace. He was nicknamed The Dark Knight for a reason and he was supposed to be the next Mets franchise player.
So how could you trade an elite starter like Harvey?
Harvey is a rarity. He’s already one of the best pitchers in the game now and with him at only 26-years of age, the sky is the limit. If he stays with the Mets long term he can one day find himself in the same class as Tom Seaver and Dwight Gooden as the top starters in franchise history. The Mets should not make the same mistake they made with Seaver when they traded him in 1977 for virtually nothing.
Trading an ace like Harvey could bring risks too. If it doesn’t work out, you basically traded an elite starter for damaged goods and the whole Seaver trade comparisons can crop up again.
deGrom and Syndergaard have been great and Steven Matz will be better. All of them seem to have enough competitiveness as pitchers and they all showed it in the postseason. At the same time, none of them were as poised and intense as Harvey was in Game 5 of the Fall Classic. The fact that he wanted to complete that game in the worst way showed his ultimate competitiveness and why Mets fans have grown to love and adore him when he first burst onto MLB scene.
You have a pitcher as gifted as Harvey, you have to do everything you can to make sure he’s on your team for awhile. There’s not many like Matt, and should the Mets trade him they would lose a possible future Hall of Famer who could end up being one of the best all time.
Final Conclusion About The Dark Knight
It’s really a tough call for the Mets and it all depends on what they really want to do with Harvey along with what they think will be best for the organization not only now but beyond as well. Harvey is one of the finest out there, and you never want to lose or give away a pitcher in Harvey’s caliber.
But even though they’re in win-now mode, the Mets also have to look towards the future as well. The fact that the Mets have surplus of pitching, can make their plan even easier, knowing that they have others who can fill the void as well as Matt, if they trade him.
Even with the Mets strong rotation, they were barely above .500 in midseason because their offense struggled mightily. Once Sandy brought some offensive help with the July trade acquisitions, the Mets offense took off and so did the team’s winning ways. With Yoenis Cespedes and Daniel Murphy’s expected departure, the Mets would definitely be in a need for offense and trading a starter like Harvey could bring a young and even bigger bat than the Mets could get in the free agent market.
One specific rumor had the Mets possibly trading Harvey to the Boston Red Sox for Xander Bogaerts and/or Mookie Betts. Bogaerts is already one of the best young shortstops out there and would instantly be an upgrade over Wilmer Flores and Ruben Tejada. Betts is a young outfielder who can hit for power and has speed. He can fill in at centerfield as well, which would be big if Cespedes is gone. Jackie Bradley Jr. was also mentioned in trade talks and while he can be a risk with his struggles in 2015, he is young with potential as well. Plus he is an outfielder too.
These rumored players for example, could be good trades because the Mets would get a young, proven hitter with potential in return.
Pitching still wins championships and the Mets nearly did so in 2015 with their rotation.
This young rotation has the potential to be one of the best ever if not the best. However, the Mets cannot afford to have an offense in 2016 that struggled mightily during the middle portion of 2015.
So in a final say, I would want the Mets to do everything to keep a pitcher like Harvey and even sign a mega deal with him long-term in order to cement the idea of building around pitching.
In reality though, it could be tough to do so, and the Mets have to be smart on not only how they spend their money but in creating balance and trying to fill needs. Sometimes sacrificing a big part could be worth it if the player in return becomes a huge hitter for us for years.