According to multiple reports, the New York Mets are willing to listen to offers for veteran starter Matt Harvey.
Former Mets ace Matt Harvey is suddenly a subject of interest at the Winter Meetings.
Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News was the first to report that the Dark Knight could be on the move.
FAREWELL DARK KNIGHT? Mets have talked to at least two teams about trading Matt Harvey: sources – @Ackert_NYDN https://t.co/a7JHNX4JrP pic.twitter.com/xmhfFcLDdm
— NY Daily News Sports (@NYDNSports) December 11, 2017
Per Ackert, the Mets have talked to at least two teams about a potential deal involving Harvey.
“They are willing to move him,” one source told Ackert, “and they said they wanted to try and flip him for a reliever. They seemed more willing to move him then (Robert) Gsellman or (Seth) Lugo.”
FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman chimed in later Monday afternoon with another potential deal.
Matt Harvey for Jurickson Profar has been discussed. Nothing firm.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 11, 2017
While Profar doesn’t fit the description of a reliever (as Ackert’s sources noted), Ken Rosenthal of the Atlantic had some news of a potential reliever the Mets could be targeting.
#Orioles discussing trading a reliever for #Mets’ Harvey, sources tell The Athletic. Brach ($5.2M) and Harvey ($5.9M) have similar arb projections per @mlbtraderumors. Both entering FA years. O’Day owed $9M each of next two seasons.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 11, 2017
The Mets’ desire to trade Harvey should not come as a surprise. He will be pitching his last season before entering the free agent market and it is unlikely the marriage between the Mets and Harvey will continue beyond that.
The team acquiring Harvey will need to reckon with his less than stellar career. Yes, there have been times of brilliance and a desire to compete, like when he lobbied hard with Terry Collins for a chance to pitch the 9th inning of the decisive 2015 World Series.
But of late, those moments have been fleeting, if visible at all. Harvey has been deluged with multiple injuries and his physical health at this point is undetermined. In fact, the 2018 season is a “show and tell” exhibition for Harvey, except the audience is not a first-grade class.
The selling point the Mets have, and the one they will probably flaunt, is his upside. His downside has been evident, but he’s still “Matt Harvey,” and that name still has some value, despite his struggles.
Harvey will make a little over $4 million in this, his final arbitration season. In monetary terms only, he is a steal at that price, given the number of innings he should provide. Which, from the Mets standpoint, should mean they do not need to give him away.
But Harvey’s time with the Mets has run its course. The Mets willingness to part ways with him now, if they are serious, sends a message to their fans that they are moving into a new era, which has long been a rallying cry from their fanbase.
Keep it here for the latest on the Harvey saga.
