Listen, we know it’s tough to catch up on everything happening in the baseball world each morning. There are all kinds of stories, rumors, game coverage and Vines of dudes getting hit in the beans every day. Trying to find all of it while on your way to work or sitting at your desk just isn’t easy. It’s okay, though, we’re going to do the heavy lifting for you each morning, and find the things you need to see from within the SB Nation baseball network, as well as from elsewhere. Please hold your applause until the end, or at least until after you subscribe to the newsletter.
Matt Harvey looked like Matt Harvey again
Tuesday’s Say Hey, Baseball includes Harvey doing Harvey things, the NCAA baseball tournament, and the Yankees’ rotation decisions.
Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images
* * *
There has been much speculation about what the Mets need to do with Matt Harvey. Did he overextend himself last fall, following Tommy John surgery, in order to help the Mets reach the World Series? Was he secretly hurt? Was he just bad now? All of that should die down, at least for a little while, as Harvey looked like Harvey once again while downing the White Sox. The right-hander went seven innings -- and on just 87 pitches -- striking out six against one walk, while limiting Chicago to one run. The reason, supposedly, is that Harvey had a mechanical flaw identified.
Of course, Harvey also had a mechanical flaw identified back on April 21. He pitched decently enough for a few starts after that until this new issue arose. Don’t take this to mean Harvey is a couple of appearances away from falling apart again. Just don’t assume that one start post-flaw identification means he’s definitely fixed now, either. The velocity was there, at least, with Harvey throwing in the upper 90s with a regularity he had not shown in 2016 to that point, so at least this time around feels more like Harvey than the last.
The Mets need Harvey to be his typical self given how good the Nationals have been and should continue to be. New York is currently one game back in the NL East, and the Senior Circuit’s Wild Card race is already tight, as the Mets are tied with the Pirates and four other teams are within 3.5 games of the pair. The Mets got to this point with Harvey mostly a mess: if he’s now at a point where his ERA is going to keep dropping each time out for a while, then New York basically just made their first “trade” of the season.
- Nelson Cruz hit a baseball entirely out of Safeco during batting practice, while the roof was closed.
- The NCAA College Baseball Tournament bracket is set, and the SEC has an historic four national seeds.
- Julio Urias is a rarity as a 19-year-old starter who is already in the majors, but he's not the first.
- The Braves would reportedly need to be blown away to trade Julio Teheran, and word is they wouldn't do it for prospects, either: Atlanta would need to be getting a big-league hitter back who is as valuable as Teheran is.
- Dayton Moore has been the Royals' general manager for 10 years now. Things didn't start out so hot, but they've certainly improved.
- The Phillies are going to cut into Ryan Howard's playing time in favor of Tommy Joseph.
- The Yankees have a decision to make with the struggling -- but promising -- young starter Luis Severino. They'll also need to figure out if Nathan Eovaldi makes more sense as part of their push towards youth, or if they should deal him to someone like the Cubs who can help New York get even younger.
- The Red Sox will lose David Ortiz to retirement at the end of 2016, and one possible solution to the roster hole was first base prospect Sam Travis. Travis tore his ACL in a Triple-A game on Tuesday, though, and is now out for the year, so suddenly it's unknown what Boston's options will be. That is a problem for next year, however.
- Not all of the minor league news is bad! Byron Buxton is back in Minnesota, as the Twins recalled the center fielder after placing Danny Santana on the disabled list.
See More:
