Cincinnati Reds: Matt Harvey made his last start, or did he?

Matt Harvey made his last start for the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night against the Kansas City Royals. Or did he?

Matt Harvey went 5 innings deep into Tuesday evening’s game against the Kansas City Royals. The free agent to be struck in 6 batters in what was likely his final start of 2018. The question now becomes whether or not we’ve seen the last of Matt Harvey in a Cincinnati Reds uniform.

While some fans may be critical of why Matt Harvey wasn’t dealt on two different occasions this season when the Reds had opportunities to do so, there is no denying that the veteran right-hander was a solid contributor to this year’s ballclub.

Matt Harvey was picked up earlier this season from the New York Mets in exchange for Reds’ backup catcher Devin Mesoraco. In 24 starts this season for the Reds, Harvey went 7-7 with a 4.50 ERA. Harvey routinely pitched into the 5th inning, which isn’t something many of the starters on this year’s team can say.

When Harvey was able to locate his fastball, hitters found it incredibly difficult to get on base. However, if that ball was up in the zone, it was going over the wall. Harvey is second on the team in home runs allowed with 27 on the season.

When asked about his future in free agency, Harvey hinted that the New York Mets, his previous team, were the only franchise with whom he would not sign with. When asked about re-signing in Cincinnati, Harvey sounded very optimistic about doing so.

"“They brought me here, and they gave me the ball every fifth day. So it was something I’m very happy about and taking into consideration, and we’ll see what happens moving forward.”"

One big plus for the Reds retaining Matt Harvey was his success against the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs. In 4 games against the Cubbies this season, Harvey was 1-0 with a 1.96 ERA and held the Chicago bats to only a .258 batting average.

Unfortunately. the same cannot be said for his performances against the Milwaukee Brewers and Pittsburgh Pirates. Harvey was 2-5 combined against the two division foes this season and allowed 50 hits through only 40.2 innings pitched against the Crew and the Buccos.

The Reds management has proclaimed that they will invest in the starting rotation this offseason. Harvey is not the biggest name among starting pitchers in free agency, but he’s definitely in the mix for one of the better starters available.

There’s no doubt that the Reds and Harvey will have dialogue as the veteran enters free agency, and if the price is right for  Cincinnati, maybe Harvey could return on a 1-2 year deal as the team’s No. 3 starter next season. Trust me, there are not a plethora of options available via free agency for starting pitching this offseason.