Right-hander Matt Harvey underwent knee surgery last month, agent Scott Boras tells Joel Sherman of the New York Post. It isn’t clear whether the procedure is expected to affect his readiness for Spring Training, but Boras tells Sherman that Harvey plans to attempt to make it back to the majors next year.
The 2022 campaign was the first since 2014 in which Harvey didn’t pitch in the majors. He missed the ’14 campaign rehabbing from Tommy John surgery but had otherwise been a fairly frequent presence in the big leagues since his 2012 debut. After a few ace-level performances through 2015, he’s consistently struggled. Harvey has settled into journeyman territory, pitching for five different teams and posting a combined 6.00 ERA in 354 innings since the start of the 2018 season.
Over the offseason, Harvey testified to providing former teammate Tyler Skaggs with Percocet in the trial against former Angels communications director Eric Kay. Kay was convicted of providing Skaggs with the drugs that led to his death, while Harvey was granted immunity from criminal prosecution for his testimony. That raised the possibility of an MLB-levied suspension for drug distribution. The Orioles re-signed him to a minor league contract in April, and Harvey was suspended for 60 games in mid-May.
After serving that ban, Harvey reported to Baltimore’s top affiliate in Norfolk. He started 10 games for the Tides, putting up a 4.31 ERA through 54 1/3 innings. That decent run prevention was in spite of a modest 18.5% strikeout rate and an untenable 2.32 home runs allowed per nine innings. Harvey didn’t pitch after September 8, presumably on account of the knee issue, and didn’t appear in the majors.
The 33-year-old (34 in March) will hit the open market again this offseason. It remains to be seen whether he’ll land another minor league contract with a big league club.
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