The New York Mets lead the Washington Nationals by 6.5 games in the NL East and are on their way to make the postseason for the first time since 2006. However, rumors indicate some problems regarding their starting rotation could begin to arise, most notably with Matt Harvey.
The right-hander is having a great year in his first season back from Tommy John surgery. He's 12-7 with a 2.60 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 158 strikeouts in 25 starts. Prior to the 2015 MLB season, Mets' general manager Sandy Alderson said Harvey would be limited to 185-190 innings in the regular season and possibly up to 200 innings if the team reached the postseason.
Harvey is currently at 166 1/3 innings, which gives him a maximum of 33 2/3 innings left on the year. New York will not be going with a six-man rotation the rest of the way because fellow starter Noah Syndergaard also needs to be kept in check during his rookie season. The team has already planned to skip his start on Saturday.
The Mets have 29 games remaining and must first ensure they secure an NL East title before looking ahead to the playoffs. Harvey will take the mound at least four more times, further pushing him into the danger zone of that 185-190 mark.
On top of that, it wasn't a reassuring sign that Harvey was fatigued after last night's outing.
"Harvey did not meet with reporters in the clubhouse, and a Mets spokesman said he was still in the trainer's room almost an hour after the final out because of dehydration and wheezing," Seth Berkman of the New York Times writes. "Harvey threw 101 pitches over six and a third innings on a hot and humid night, and he began to feel weak during his start."
Manager Terry Collins said Harvey would be skipped one more time before the season ends, but will that be enough to preserve him for a deep postseason run?
"As much as the public wants to agonize over this monitoring of innings, the Mets' process has left them where they want to be, heading into the final month of the season: No healthy pitcher will miss the playoffs," Andy Martino of the New York Daily News writes.
Unless Martino has information that is not yet made public, how can this be assumed?
He's right about no healthy pitcher missing the playoffs, but what about every healthy pitcher remaining with the team through a World Series run?
With 29 games left and one guaranteed skipped start, Harvey should pitch four more times. Let's say he goes six innings in each of those four starts, which would tack on 24 to his season total, bringing him to 190. That leaves him with 10 innings for the postseason, or two starts.
If the Mets plan to make a deep run, they'll need Harvey for more than two starts.
"With the innings recommendations in place before the season, I'm not sure why the Mets didn't begin restricting Harvey's innings earlier in the second half, and some ethical considerations will be in play in the weeks ahead," ESPN Insider Buster Olney writes.
"Harvey can say and probably will say he wants to continue pitching as much as possible, but ultimately, it's up to the Mets to decide when and how much to use him. Harvey doesn't have the power to place himself on the mound."
Say the Mets make the World Series and Harvey pitched in both the NLDS and NLCS. Based on conventional wisdom, he won't be able to pitch unless Alderson overrides the medical advice provided by Harvey's doctor(s).
Is exercising such power ethical, or even allowed?
Olney asked an MLB GM if there are any legal obligations in terms of bypassing the medical advice. The GM replied, "I don't know."
At this point the Mets' strategy to limit Harvey is coinciding very well with how the team is performing. They've already skipped him a number of times and still lead the NL East by 6.5 games. However, one more skip may not be enough if the team is relying on him to guide them to a World Series victory. Also, skipping him more than once this late in the season would not be the best of decisions because the team needs to secure a division title first, which is why Olney thinks it should have been done earlier.
Alderson has been tasked with a lot this season, and the pressing decisions will not end if the Mets make the postseason.
