Sandy Alderson looked a little green sitting next to Matt Harvey during Tuesday evening’s press conference to announce that no, the young ace won’t go under the knife and miss the next year, thank you very much.
Harvey took a look at the long term, at the constant punting of the Mets seasons, of the endless nagging talk of future seasons and evaluating talent and incremental nibbling.
Harvey calmly threw the chin music at Alderson and his incessant caution and dissembling. Nope, I’ll take the ball, Sandy. Make your trades, do the signings, and get this thing going.
Sure it may not work out. The green light from Dr. James Andrews – and seriously, Jerry Seinfeld, you’ve never heard of Dr. Andrews? – may just yield more heartache down the road. Harvey may yet lie upon the surgeon’s table as the blades saw into his elbow.
But for today, Matt Harvey signaled this: No more waiting.
And his target was sitting next to him, the lawyerly West Coast administrator who has a chance to be the only GM in Mets history to endure declining records in each of his first three years. Sure, Alderson is hand-cuffed by his ownership’s financial woes – but he hasn’t exactly been lights-out with what he’s had to work with either.
Given the opening from the arm cutter in Florida, Harvey took the bold path. He’ll pitch his arm back into shape and go into the Spring at the head of this rotation.
And Harvey sent a clear message. No more caution. No more evaluation. No more waiting. Let’s Go!
Baseball culture has become so future-oriented with so many endless lists of prospect rankings – and it’s a zombie infection that claimed the Mets in the Alderson Era. Harvey’s message by skipping surgery is clear – play for the here and now, play for the win, change this team. And with that, Sandy Alderson is finally on the hot seat.
I almost stood and cheered.
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This is my first post for Mets Merized Online, and I’m thrilled to join the team here. MMO has an incredibly lively community of authors and commenters, all of them dedicated fans who love to argue and debate with such passion. After talking with the wise Joe D., I’m very glad to formally join the line up.
I started out as a sportswriter in 80s, covering high school and college sports for the old Gannett chain in Westchester, and then went on to cover politics as an editor for The Riverdale Press in the Bronx. Then it was an Internet company (also a journalistic venture) and two philanthropy companies. In between, I’ve written for The New York Times, The Daily Beast, Huffington Post, techPresident.com, Social Edge, Industry Standard, Inside, Worth and Contribute magazines, among many other publications. I currently write the Social Ventures blog for Forbes.
But it’s always been baseball and the Mets, since that magical season in 1969. My postings here will be occasional and I love comments, passionate arguments, and suggestions. I’m not a pure stats guy, and I love the culture and history of the game, so look for some of that. I tweet a lot – with plenty of Mets – @tomwatson.
Let’s Go Mets!
