Fansided

5 teams who should take a chance on Matt Harvey

By Joshua Sadlock

NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 03: Matt Harvey #33 of the New York Mets in action against the Philadelphia Phillies during a game at Citi Field on April 3, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 03: Matt Harvey #33 of the New York Mets in action against the Philadelphia Phillies during a game at Citi Field on April 3, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MA – APRIL 13: Chris Tillman #30 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches in the first inning of a game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on April 13, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA – APRIL 13: Chris Tillman #30 of the Baltimore Orioles pitches in the first inning of a game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on April 13, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

3. Baltimore Orioles

A handful of MLB teams has failed to crack double-digit wins as the season moves into the first week of May. Three of them are not trying to win this year. One of them is. That’s right, folks. The 8-23 Baltimore Orioles actually entered this season with expectations of contending for a playoff berth.

Neat.

Starting pitching was the biggest problem for the O’s last year as they sunk to their first losing season since 2011. The front office attempted to address the deficiency by signing Andrew Cashner and Alex Cobb to multi-year deals. Cashner has been passable for a number-four starter, while Cobb has been knocked around after signing late and missing Spring Training. His most recent start was much better.

The final “answer” to round out the Orioles rotation was holdover Chris Tillman, who struggled with shoulder injuries in 2017 and has been smacked to the tune of an 8.14 ERA over his last 118.1 innings in the big leagues (he did allow 20 hits and 13 runs in 16.1 innings on his rehab assignment, so the Orioles shouldn’t be acting surprised).

This is already a lost season for the Orioles, who should really be getting ready to trade Manny Machado to the Los Angeles Dodgers. There’s no reason to keep letting Tillman pitch. He’s done. If the only option to replace him is Mike Wright, why not take a chance on Matt Harvey? The worst that can happen is he continues to struggle for a 100-loss team and is non-tendered at the end of the year.

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