Marc Malusis: Matt Harvey is only one who can provide clarity to the innings limit mess

There is drama in Queens in September and did you expect anything else? I personally did. But thisis the Mets and now they have a crisis with Matt Harvey.

He came here as the alpha male, the ace and the man that was the beginning of change in Queens. Now, it is a mess. Why? Because we are talking about innings limits after it was made public on Friday through his agent, Scott Boras, that he has a hard innings limit of 180. That is the medical advice of Dr. James Andrews, the surgeon who performed the career saving operation.

Harveyburst ontothe scene and then – in a flash – was gone, dueto a torn UCL and Tommy John surgery. It has been a long road back and the Mets handled him with kid gloves and protected the asset that is their ace. Now, when the Mets are finally again relevant and October dreams are a reality, this happens.An aggressive agent speaking for his client and telling the Mets and everyone else that the future is more important than the here and now.

Mets fans don’t want to hear it. They are frustrated because Harvey has always wanted the ball. He did not want a six-man rotation. He wanted to come back sooner than the Mets and the doctors wanted him to. He has talked about pitching in October. Now, his actions may say something else. He did nothing on Saturday to quiet the storm when he skirted the questions and talked about focusing on his next start, which is Tuesday in Washington. No answers about the future and where we stand with all of this. Just more questions about the future.

Here is what we know. Boras is protecting the player and his future earnings. He is doing what a good does. Sometimes an athlete needs to be protected from himself. I cannot be upset at Boras doing his job. Maybe, he could have handled it differently and not made it so public, but he obviously did that because he was getting the reaction from the Mets that he wanted. Now he has their attention.

The communication between all parties seems to be amiss. That has been made perfectly clear as well. And we know that ultimately this will come down to a decision that is made by the player, Matt Harvey.

He is in an impossible spot. Pitch for the here and now and let the future be damned. Or, shut it down and protect your earnings potential, but also change the way that you are viewed in this city forever. He has talked a good game, but will he follow through and demand the ball and go against medical advice. It is easy for all of us to tell him to take the ball, but would you? If you were looking at a potential 9-figure long term contract in a few years, would you risk it? If you are honest with yourself, that is not an easy question to answer. Now we wait for an answer from Harvey. There does not seem to be any wiggle room from the Boras/Harvey camp. What does it mean for October? When everything looked lined up for the Mets, we have this mess. It is a murky situation and the only one that can provide true clarity is Matt Harvey.

What does he do? The decision will impact this year and for years to come. Your move Dark Knight.