Matt Harvey went 7-7 with a 4.50 E.R.A. in 24 starts with the Reds after being traded from the Mets last season. Dylan Buell/Getty Images
Years ago, when the baseball world looked ahead to this winter’s starry free-agent class, Matt Harvey stood out as an especially compelling name. He started the All-Star Game for the Mets in 2013 — his first full major league season — and two years later, after having Tommy John surgery, he started the first and last games of the World Series.
But the years since then have been rough on Harvey, whose New York career burned out in a series of injuries and off-field distractions.