Cincinnati Reds: What a team-friendly deal for Matt Harvey might look like

Might the Cincinnati Reds be able to bring back Matt Harvey on a team-friendly contract?

I will cut to the chase. I loved the Matt Harvey trade to the Cincinnati Reds in May. However, unlike the ‘Arm Chair General Managers’ who saw a possible strong “return on investment” of prospects at the trade deadline, I saw it as perhaps, just perhaps, the Cincinnati Reds were showing some resolve in trying to remedy their nemesis of lack of starting pitching.

This long-suffering Reds fan suddenly felt hope. This long-suffering Reds fan wants to see Matt Harvey in a Cincinnati Reds uniform in 2019. Is there a team friendly contract in the works?

At the time of the trade with the New York Mets for oft-injured Devin Mesoraco, the Reds were a lifeless 9-27. Anthony DeSclafani started the 2018 campaign on the DL, Homer Bailey‘s record was 0-5 with a 5.61 ERA, and Luis Castillo, at the time, appeared to be regressing with an ERA of 7.0.

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Harvey represented a low risk and high reward possibility. Don’t we wish all of our financial investments could have these risk factors associated with them? If he underperformed, then the Reds could trade him for some Class-A prospects or simply release him.

Instead, the Dark Knight responded by shutting out the National League Champions, Los Angeles Dodgers, over four innings, allowing only one hit. I personally wanted to see him get the fifth inning under his belt for his first win as a Cincinnati Red. His next start at San Francisco went well. Harvey went on to record his first win as a Red against the Pittsburg Pirates on May 22nd.

Harvey’s last start as a New York Met saw him give up five earned runs in just two innings. If nothing else, Cincinnati appeared to provide a nice change of scenery for Harvey. The Reds responded well as they were 34-25 between May 8 and July 14. The 9-game over .500 stretch did not hold serve for the remainder of the season as the Reds were 58-68 following the Harvey trade.

As I alluded to in my article over the weekend, it is no secret that obtaining quality starting pitchers (plural) is paramount for the 2019 season. There are viable options on the open market, but what is the reality that Matt Harvey is a Red in 2019?

We know this for sure, Matt Harvey will not be pitching for the New York Mets. I could be dead wrong, but I do not believe that he will command elite money in the free agency market. Could a team such as the Braves or Brewers, who are arguably very close to winning the National League overspend for Harvey?

There has already been some chatter regarding the Florida Marlins. What would the Fish be willing to spend? I suppose one can never count out a big market New York Yankees or Houston Astros, who fell short of the Boston Red Sox, to swoop in with big money. These scenarios are all possible.

If the Cincinnati Reds are serious about acquiring starting pitching, my opinion is that it does make sense to attempt to sign Harvey to a team friendly contract. At 29 years old, a career record of 41-43, an ERA slightly below 4.00 with a 2018 salary of $5.6M, what would it take for the Cincinnati Reds to resign him?

Conventional wisdom says a contract between $7-$10 million would be on par with other starting pitchers with similar stats. Per Spotrac.com, comparable pitchers with similar ages include Chris Archer, 30, who makes $7.5M to Carlos Martinez, 27, who makes $11.7M. There are several other quality starting pitchers in that same salary range.

What incentives could be offered? Could it be a backloaded contract to further entice him? Homer Bailey will come off the books in 2020, thus freeing up a substantial amount of payroll. As this fan suddenly plays GM, I would start out with an offer of two years at $18 million with incentives, leaving some room for negotiation. The Cincinnati Reds need Harvey and frankly, Harvey still needs the Reds.