Matt Harvey Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Harvey admits regrets over Game 5 of 2015 World Series with Mets

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 3/16/23

Former New York Mets starter Matt Harvey has admitted to some regrets regarding that famous Game 5 loss to the Kansas City Royals in the 2015 World Series.

"It was raw emotion," Harvey told Jon Heyman of the New York Post about that fateful night. "The only thing I thought of was to bring a championship home and keep it going. I got fired up; the crowd got fired up. One of those emotional things that’s tough to [harness] when you’re cruising. It was an emotional game. It was hard to say no. Now at my age, I probably wouldn’t have caused an emotional scene. As a more mature self, I would have handled things differently."

With the Mets trailing the Royals 3-1 in the series, Harvey took the bump in front of an energized home crowd at Citi Field. The man known at the time as the "Dark Knight" allowed no runs and struck nine batters out across eight innings of work to give the hosts a great chance of extending the series.

Manager Terry Collins decided to pull Harvey with the Mets leading 2-0 heading into the bottom of the eighth inning. Harvey protested, Collins backed down, and the rest is history. Harvey failed to record a single out in the ninth, and the Royals tied the game before they won the contest and the series in extra innings:

Harvey added during his conversation with Heyman that he wished he "had pumped a fastball in there and challenged" Kansas City's Lorenzo Cain in the top of the ninth. Harvey instead walked Cain due to an off-speed pitch that didn't fool the batter as it had earlier that evening.

Harvey has never since been the same. The thoracic outlet syndrome he was diagnosed with in 2016 derailed a promising career, and ESPN's Alden Gonzalez noted that the right-hander was suspended for 60 games in 2022 for violating MLB's drug program in association with testimony related to the death of former Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs.

More recently, Harvey represented Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic this month.

"He has enough of a pitch mix to attack a hitter’s weaknesses," Italy pitching coach Mike Borzello said about Harvey's decreased velocity these days. "He can throw anything at any time. No reason he can’t do what Zack Greinke is doing. Same pitch mix. Same velocity, same pitch ability."

It's unclear if any MLB team will give Harvey, who turns 34 on March 27, a serious look after the WBC.

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