Major League Baseball

Former Mets ace Matt Harvey retires from baseball

Published May. 5, 2023 1:51 p.m. ET

Matt Harvey, the onetime Mets ace who helped New York to an unlikely 2015 run to the National League pennant but had the peak of his career cut short by injuries, announced his retirement from baseball in an Instagram post Friday morning.

"To the fans, and most importantly the NY Mets fans: You made a dream come true for me. A dream I never could have thought to be true. Who would have thought a kid from Mystic, [Conn.] would be able to play in the greatest city in the world, his hometown. You are forever embedded in my heart."

"Goodbye, baseball. And thank you."

Harvey, the seventh overall pick by the Mets in the 2010 MLB Draft, made his major league debut in 2012 and emerged as the Mets' best starting pitcher and a fan favorite by 2013, getting the nod to start for the NL in that year's All-Star Game at his home stadium of Citi Field.

A Sports Illustrated cover early that season dubbed Harvey the "Dark Knight of Gotham" after the superhero Batman, and Mets fans quickly adopted the "Dark Knight" nickname for Harvey for the rest of his time there.

He would miss the 2014 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, but came back in 2015 to lead a young, talented Mets starting rotation that also included Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz. Sparked by a midseason trade for slugger Yoenis Cespedes, the Mets surged to win the 2015 NL East division title and beat the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs in the playoffs, advancing to face the Kansas City Royals in the World Series.

Harvey pitched well enough to exit with the lead in Game 1 of the series, only for the Royals to tie the game in the ninth and later win in extra innings. In Game 5, Harvey convinced manager Terry Collins to let him keep pitching in the ninth inning after throwing over 100 pitches in eight shutout innings with the Mets facing elimination at home. However, Harvey immediately allowed a walk an and RBI double and was pulled. The Royals once again tied the game later in the ninth and prevailed in extra innings to clinch the series win.

2015 would be the last season where Harvey pitched at an elite level. He dealt with injuries, poor performance, and off-field issues over the next few years before the Mets released him early in the 2018 season, and never came close to replicating his past success during stops with the Royals, Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Angels. After sitting out the 2022 MLB season, he also pitched for Team Italy in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, allowing just one run on four hits over seven total innings across two starts.

In his retirement announcement, Harvey referenced an early 2013 game where Mets fans at Citi Field chanted his name after he outdueled Washington Nationals ace Stephen Strasburg and helped the Mets to a victory against the then-defending NL East champions.

"I pitched to win," Harvey wrote. "To fire up my team and more importantly, to fire up the fans in a city that I've always loved. It's one of those feelings that will never go away. … That day will forever be in my dreams."

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