The first Harvey Day of the year will soon be upon us.
Mark your calendars for March 6. The return of Matt Harvey is almost here. The Mets have tentatively set their first spring training home game as Harvey's return to game action against the Detroit Tigers, which happens to also be the first game that will air on SNY.
The Mets recently announced that Matt Harvey is scheduled to face hitters on Friday in a batting practice session for the first time, but those hitters won't be swinging at his pitches. Harvey downplayed the significance of throwing to batters Friday when talking to reporters but sounds like he will put more stock in the first game action of his spring.
The start will be Harvey's first since August 24, 2013. Before succumbing to the torn ligament that required Tommy John surgery, Harvey had a 2.39 ERA and 2.33 FIP in 36 major league starts with excellent strikeout and walk rates, to boot.
There might not be any regular season implications in this game, but that doesn't mean that Mets fans everywhere won't be tuning in for the first Harvey Day of 2015.