New York Mets suspend Matt Harvey 3 games

The New York Mets have suspended Matt Harvey for three games due to a violation of team rules, per multiple reports. The righthanded starting pitcher has been sent home, and is not making his scheduled start today.

While speculation immediately erupted that the suspension was related to the placement of an adult sex toy in the locker of a teammate in a photo that the team tweeted out, reports indicate that it is not related to that.

This is just the latest episode in what has been an often contentious relationship between Harvey and both the team and the New York media. He was subject to criticism over indicating he would shut himself down for the year in September, 2015, despite the Mets being in a playoff race. Ultimately, the shutdown didn’t happen, and he ended up pitching four games in the playoffs, totaling 217 innings over 33 starts in his first season post-Tommy John surgery.

Unfortunately, Harvey hasn’t pitched nearly as well since then, putting up a 4.86 ERA in 17 starts last year, and a 5.14 ERA in 6 starts in 2017.

Harvey is slated to be a free agent after the 2018 season, and there has already been talk that the Mets will look to move him at the trade deadline. If Texas hangs around in the A.L. playoff hunt, I expect that Jon Daniels and company will be inquiring on the righthander.