On this fated day eight years ago, Matt Harvey pitched the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series, and we all know how it ended. Lucas Duda throws home, the Royals win, etc., etc. But would things really have gone that differently had Harvey not pitched the ninth? MMO challenged two writers to argue whether or not Harvey should have taken the mound or if Terry Collins should have handed the ball off in the ninth.
Allison Waxman: Handed the Ball Off
There was nobody out there drinking the Harvey Kool-Aid more than I was. When I brought my nephew to his first Mets game, I made sure he wore a Batman t-shirt, after all, for our Dark Knight. However, in my heart, I can never defend him going out there to finish off the game. He’s coming off Tommy John surgery, he’s over 100 pitches, and he only has a two-run lead. It’s as if the baseball gods were tempting him, and he took the bait.
I understand why you don’t go to Jeurys Familia in the situation. Sure, he’s had the best season of his career, but he’s also just blown the save the night before and in Game 1 of the World Series. The rest of the bullpen also got a beating that World Series, but in a series-clinching game, a World Series-clinching game, you cannot let your starter go back out there. No matter how good of a game he’s having, you never know when the wheels will fall off or when the end is the end.
Unfortunately, this is what people remember from Harvey’s Mets career, and I wonder how things might have gone if Terry handed the ball off to someone like Bartolo Colón, who only allowed one run in the series in four ⅓ innings pitched. The Mets could have won the game, extended the series, and even added another World Series title to their belt.
Mike Mayer: Give Him A Chance…But
I have no issue with Terry Collins giving Harvey a chance in that spot. I was at the game, and the atmosphere of Citi Field when Harvey came out for the ninth inning hasn’t been felt again, unfortunately. Harvey was at 102 pitches after a quick eight inning, a count that he had surpassed nine times in the regular season, and he was coming off an outing of only 80 pitches in Game 1 of the World Series. As you can see in the video, The Dark Knight clearly fought to stay in the game.
That said, Collins should’ve gone into the inning thinking that as soon as Harvey allowed a baserunner, he would go to the bullpen. Harvey walked Cain to start the inning and was left in to face Eric Hosmer. Hosmer doubled off Harvey to cut the Mets lead to 2-1 before Collins finally went to the bullpen. We don’t need to talk about what happened after that.
“Obviously, I let my heart get in the way of my gut. I love my players. And I trust them,” Terry Collins said. “It didn’t work. It was my fault.”
