Matt Harvey found a friend in the media to defend him in his spat with the Mets over an innings limit, and it was none other than Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez.
Martinez, who pitched for the Mets from 2005-2008 but struggled with injuries during his time with the team, weighed in on the matter via Twitter Tuesday.
The Mets have to monitor how many stressful innings Harvey has been having and keep him to under 5 innings no matter what the situation is
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) September 8, 2015
The Mets have their way of doing things but I don't think they do a good job relaying to a player the truth about his situation.
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) September 8, 2015
Harvey has pitched so much already this year, that I think it will click right up if he has to be in a playoff game
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) September 8, 2015
Sometimes management has one way to go about the business, as I think trainers in the clubhouse report to management,but not to players
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) September 8, 2015
When there is confusion about information, the player feels like he can't trust the organization and goes to his agent who looks out for him
— Pedro Martinez (@45PedroMartinez) September 8, 2015
That was some good insight from Pedro on how Harvey likely feels. And I know Harvey and Scott Boras are looking out for the pitcher’s long-term health, whereas the team is more focused on its goal of making a World Series run this season. Those two things are in conflict. And while Harvey and Boras would rather see the team lean towards protecting the player, the franchise’s obvious priority is to try winning it all while being cautious with the ace.
The Mets have a chance to really do damage in the postseason, so I have no problem with them trying to get Harvey to contribute within reason in October.
