Ernest Dove - Is It Time For Mets Fans to Believe and Trust in Matt Harvey?

 

  The season is almost upon us. The Mets will be preparing to send out one of the best 25 man squads they have had in years, headed by their 4 aces to begin the season.  One such ace is that of Mr. Matt Harvey.  The man, the myth, the ego, the one with the hated agent, and the man whom many in Mets universe need to start to love again.
 
 I've stated it before, and I will state it again....... If/when the Mets are/were to have another extremely important and meaningful game in October/November, My first choice would be to have Matt Harvey on the mound.  I don't wish to try and rank the aces, because to me it doesn't matter who the SP1 SP2 SP3 SP4 actually are.  That can and will be manipulated throughout the year, as we saw last year from both the Mets and the Nats during the stretch run as need during crucial games and upcoming series, etc. But again, my A number 1 is Matt. And I think its time any/all Mets fans agree and support Mr. Harvey ON THE FIELD.

  Everyone has shared their thoughts and opinions over the past 24 months regarding Matt, from calling him a savior, to calling him the next Yankee, to calling him the infamous label of the 24 + 1 guy on the team.  In the end, what have we had?  Well, we've had a guy who pitched OVER 215 innings last year, his first year coming off surgery. He pretty much, statically, had one of the greatest first seasons coming back of any pitcher ever following such a surgery. And there is simply no reason to underestimate just how good he can be this coming year ahead.

  But again, the question is about trust and belief, not only from the organization, but from the fans themselves/ourselves.  As always, I try to remind myself and everyone else that baseball is a GAME, and its a form of ENTERTAINMENT.  Our job as fans is to watch said games, and enjoy the entertainment.  And, when it comes to Matt Harvey, I simply don't recall any situation where his actual in-game performance was negatively effected by anything he was either accused of doing, or actually did in front of a camera, from his people behind him, the organization itself, of anything done out in the community and/or public.

  So, basically, we have a star who may be acting like a star. But guess what, have you heard ANYTHING this past and current coming to an end offseason that might be seen as negative from Mr. Harvey?.................don't worry, I'll wait............................

 All I know, (while sitting in my little desk/chair down here in South Florida), is that Matt Harvey quietly and quickly settled his arbitration case, no questions ask, and no interesting tidbits leaked to the media or anything.

 All I know is that Matt Harvey is already at camp, before he was required and/or scheduled to report and be there.  Matt Harvey is still answering immediate questions that are being thrown his way, but right now they are all positive and pro-team.  I don't recall at this point any out of context material and fire to play with regarding the recent questions regarding his willingness to re-sign and extend contract to stay with the Mets.  Regardless of who his agent his, Matt Harvey has long since proven that he has a mind of his own, and has followed through on everything asked of him, from waiting the entire 17 months to pitch, to sticking with a version of pitch limits while also allowing for his body and elbow to pitch the 215 + innings without any arguments from him.

  We now enter a new season, with the highest expectations placed on this team in years.  Heck, even the front office is now no longer shying away from the expectations, and truly understand there is no more exceeded of some expectations but simply MEETING expectations starting in 2016. And Matt Harvey is still a centerpiece of this team and organization.   Long gone SHOULD be the days where fans battle over Matt being a hero versus being overrated. He's proven his worth in this league, He hasn't been arrested, there's no reported 'incidents' being looked into, and there's no facebook/twitter/blog community beef, issues, backlash or concerns going on that swirl anywhere near the man.

 So, today is a new day.  Us Mets fans will always be Mets fans.  Like other franchise in sports, there are fans who will praise and idolize certain players on one day, while others demand they are released or traded the next after an outing or at bat.  But either way I think today is the day Matt Harvey is respected universally within the Mets community.

  Macks Mets and its writers/readers/commenters have always worked hard to maintain a positive level of respect for everyone.  Obviously, we have screamed a few screams and written a few rants (shhh don't go back on some of my old posts) but overall we stick to the point of, as Mack would say, shooting the shit and talking Mets baseball for fun.  With FUN now being the key word.  My expectations for the season remain the same.  I expect the Mets to WIN more than LOSE.  The total numbers will be determined on the field.

 And, speaking of the field, and on the mound, I expect Matt Harvey to be Matt Harvey.  Oh, and THIS time I think all fans should agree that this is a very GOOD thing for Matt to be Matt. The Dark Knight is set to once again rule Gotham, and even the residents of Panic City should rejoice. Let's at least save the doomsday trade talk for next season.  As always, we're gonna need something to discuss during that off time anyway :)