5 Under the Radar MLB Free Agent Starters That Will Improve Your Team

2. Matt Harvey

Matt Harvey’s exit from the Mets was extremely ugly, and many thought that his career was pretty much done after a rocky start to 2018 and his refusal to be demoted to AAA. Somehow, he was able to bounce back from all of this and have a pretty OK season for the Cincinnati Reds, going 7-7 in 24 starts with a 4.50 ERA.

Though the Dark Knight days of Harvey consistently throwing a 98+ fastball are probably over he still has a decent set of tools in his repertoire; his fastball averages a respectable 94.61 MPH on the gun, and he’s been gradually increasing the use of his slider, which is his pitch with the lowest batting average against.

Another thing that Harvey has going for him especially compared others on this list, is that he will only be 30 next season. His injury history up to this point is troubling, but he’s still young enough where it’s possible he could put it all behind him with proper treatment and retooling.

To prove to a team that he can be durable Harvey will probably have to take a reasonable short-term contract. If a team can work this out it would be extremely beneficial; Harvey is at this time pretty ready to be plugged into a fourth rotation spot, and he’d have a huge incentive to again prove himself as a pitcher deserving of a bigger contract.