The LTJ Editorial: “Matt Harvey: A look inside the rise of #33”

“The LTJ Editorial”
Author: Luis Tirado Jr.
Date: 4-18-13
E-Mail: NYLuis7@gmail.com
Twitter/Instagram: @Slayerdemise

“Matt Harvey: A look inside the rise of #33”

Matthew Edward Harvey grew up in Mystic, Connecticut and sports, specifically baseball, has always been in his veins. His own father played baseball for the University of Connecticut and while he didn’t play at the same college his dad did, he saw glimpses of his successful future at the University of North Carolina. Even though he majored in Sports Administration, it was there where he made the All-Atlantic Coast Conference team as a Junior and was known for his consistent strikeouts. In college he recorded a total of 203K’s before being drafted in 2010 to the NY Mets. In that New York minute he used to sign his name on that contract to the Mets, fans who love their Amazin’s started to only dream if this could be our next ace in the making and the next big homegrown talent to take the Mets to the next level.

Once all the media interviews, pictures, and soundbytes were done, Harvey was looking forward more than ever to that 2011 debut with the St. Lucie Mets. On his Opening Day debut, he struck out nine in five innings! As he was called up to the AA Binghamton Mets, his numbers were solid as he was 13-5 with a 3.32 ERA. His name was starting to get a whole lot of national attention as the 54th ranked prospect in all of baseball according to the popular “Baseball America” publication. Then he got called up to the AAA Buffalo Bisons where he continued to dominate the pitching scene. With a 7-5, 3.68 ERA, and 112K’s it was only a matter of time before he got one last phone call to be in the majors. Once that important phone call that changes your life arrived, the future bearer of #33 of the Mets was born.

That call came around the end of July in 2012 and sure enough on July 26th 2012, he made his major league debut against the Arizona Diamondbacks. His debut was nothing short of historic! He made a franchise record in a pitching debut with 11K’s (Mets legends Tom Seaver/Bill Denehy had shared 9K’s in their respective debuts) while also setting another huge record. He was the first pitcher since 1900 to have at least 10K’s in a debut and getting two hits. That’s right, Harvey went 2-for-2 when it came to the batting plate. That season he ended at 3-5 with a 2.73 ERA. Mets fans knew it was only a matter of time before he continued to evolve into our future ace.

Now, here we are. 2013 and another MLB season awaits us. Harvey is indeed in our starting rotation and so far is having an amazing season. He’s already 3-0 with an amazing 0.82 ERA. He’s leading the NL in ERA and wins and could you believe he almost had a no-hitter just a few days ago? Things are looking so bright for Harvey, for the first time in his career, he was named the NL Player of the Week last week! This coming Friday, he will actually be facing one of his best pitching adversaries. Since the Nationals are coming to town, it only makes sense he would eventually face Stephen Strausburg! Whatever you need to do, leave work early, pretend you have a cold for school, or ask for a rain check on a dinner date, you don’t want to miss this game. It will be a true test since the Nationals have been playing some pretty good baseball as of late.

With his 6’4, 225 pound pitching figure, I’m confident he will have a nice long successful career. His slider, curve, change-up, and fastball arsenal are impressive. That deadly accurate fastball of his with that ferocious velocity hits that catcher’s glove with such a force, you can hear the crowd go “Oh!”. The buzz around social networking about Harvey is also gaining lots of popularity. Other players, coaches, and fans worldwide are exciting to see the evolution of Harvey. A name all us Mets fans will always remember also chimed in his thoughts. After watching his first few starts this season, Bobby Valentine was quoted on SNY for saying he might be “the best Met pitcher to ever wear the uniform”. This diehard Mets fan agrees and this is only the start of what awaits for #33.……