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New York Mets Reaction: Matt Harvey Gets Knocked Around

By
Jeremy Fialkow
-

On a day the New York Mets went split squad in the Grapefruit League, ace Matt Harvey got hammered to the tune of six runs.

    • New York Mets 5 (7-12)
    • Houston Astros 8 (14-8)
    • Grapefruit League, Final, Box Score
    • Tradition Field, Port St. Lucie, FLA
  • New York Mets 1
  • Boston Red Sox 4 (10-13)
  • Grapefruit League, Final, Box Score
  • JetBlue Park, Lee County, FLA

By Jeremy Fialkow

Today was a bit different than normal for the New York Mets, as there team was split into two squads facing two different MLB teams, in two different locations.

Starting on the hill for one squad was Matt Harvey against the Astros, the other Logan Verrett against the Red Sox.

You can take an educated guess which game contained the Mets “Varsity” team and which would be deemed “Junior Varsity.” Although, picking which starter would give a better performance proved to be a tricky task.

The fact of the matter is, Matt Harvey threw up duck against Houston. Verrett, on the other hand, threw four scoreless innings against Boston.

Harvey’s final line: 3.0 IP, 7 hits, 6 ER, 4 BBs, 2 Ks

Another Harvey Day, yes, but not a very impressive or reassuring one. This game represents what was likely Matt’s second to last or final appearance before taking the mound next Sunday to open up the 2016 baseball season against the champion Kansas City Royals.

Matt Harvey’s biggest accomplishment in what was otherwise a meaningless game is the fact that he became the first pitcher to bat for New York this spring.

How about some more enlightening news?

Captain David Wright played back-to-back games for this first time in Grapefruit League play. Hey, if Cap could do that once or maybe fifty times over the course of the regular season, that would be nice!

In solid defensive news, Neil Walker began a nifty 4-6-3 inning-ending double-play to get the Mets through the top of the 1st. His play at second base this spring makes Mets fans everywhere feel significantly better about him replacing newfound enemy and ex-met Daniel Murphy. Simply put, Walker’s defense is astronomically better than Murphy’s.

All in all, the Varsity squad could only must three hits in five innings against 2015 AL Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel.

Now, onto the game of scrub Junior Varsity players…which appeared bleak from the start as well.

Fortunately, most Met fans didn’t tune into the JV game, which wasn’t televised anywhere. Well, you didn’t miss much. Squad JV was in full-midseason mode, waiting until the fifth-inning to record their first hit against Boston, a single from Eric ‘Soup’ Campbell.

Here’s some reaction from the Junior Varsity game:

The two Metropolitan losses today extend New York’s Grapefruit League losing streak to seven games. Luckily, these games hold no weight. Who’s ready for Opening Day!?

Friday, the Mets gather together again as one, and battle the St. Louis Cardinals. First pitch is at 1:10 pm ET. You can catch the game on ESPN, SNY, and MLB.TV.

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Jeremy Fialkow
Jeremy Fialkow was born and raised in Miami, FLA, but currently studies at the University of Maryland. When he's not studying hard, he can be found supporting his sometimes hopeless NY teams: Knicks, Mets, Jets, and Isles. Your sympathy is appreciated.

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