Matt Harvey,the Mets ace who is currently recovering from Tommy John surgery, is chomping at the bit to get back on the field, but his manager, Terry Collins, told him to settle down and focus on 2015.
My question is, if the Mets were in the playoff hunt, say a game or two away from the last Wild Card, would Collins be singing the same tune, or would he be encouraging his ace to come back?
Keep in mind, the Mets had another player who had TJ surgery, rushed back, got hurt, and had to have the same surgery all over again. The question there is whether that’s rare or will it happen to the majority of players who rush back? I’m not a medical expert so I don’t know.
Still, I would think that if the Mets were in the hunt, there’d be a ton of pressure for Collins to bring him back.
Collins, after all, as the Mets manager hasn’t made the playoffs. If they were close, I’d imagine his job would be on the line, and he doesn’t exactly manage in a low pressure environment. Fans would be screaming for Harvey, Harvey, being the bulldog that he is, wouldn’t care what happened to his teammate and would be screaming for himself. My bet is that he’d give in and bring Harvey back.
Luckily for Collins, the Mets are out of it, so he can tell his star to cool it, blame this lost season on injuries and focus on next season. Given that he hasn’t made the playoffs with the Mets, he better hope his team is healthy and in contention. Or else.
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