The NY Mets and pitcher Matt Harvey are at odds over where he should do his rehab for Tommy John surgery this season, as the pitcher wants to remain in New York with the team, while the franchise wants him in Florida at their facility and while a return date is long in the future, Harvey wants to pitch in 2014 and if the Mets say no, could he force a trade after the season?
The answer to that question is no, but it is interesting that Harvey is pushing back against the Mets, as they have been known to handle things in this way before and that could rub Harvey the wrong way after he had a breakout season in 2013. According to Hardball Talk, Harvey was speaking with the New York Daily News about his frustrations regarding his rehab and as he was speaking with a reporter, the PR man for the Mets, Jay Horowitz, came over and would not leave the area and the story plays out the entire scene in great detail.
Basically, Harvey is speaking with a reporter, which for some reason is a no-no for the Mets and Horowitz comes by and starts glaring at the reporter, which makes Harvey have to say that he's "okay" and that "If somebody needs to talk to the Players' Association, I have a right to have him writing about me." Either way, the situation does not sound good on either end and the contention for the Mets is that they want Harvey rehabbing at their spring facility in Florida, while Harvey wants to be around his teammates and part of the team as he tries to make a return this season.
Earlier this year Harvey said that he would pitch again in 2014, something that the Mets tried to downplay and now it appears that the two are in a disagreement. Harvey said that he hopes to be back by August, but that may be too soon for Tommy John surgery and that appears to be a point of contention for the team as well. If the two sides keep going at it like this it could get ugly and based on how the Mets have dealt with things like this before, keep an eye on Harvey's Twitter page. For real.
The Mets are coming into a very important season and having Harvey healthy for next year is huge for the team and they won't allow anything to get in the way of that. Harvey is determined to pitch this season and it will be interesting to see where he ends up rehabbing after all is said and done.
