Applaud Matt Harvey, For Everything

It’s peculiar how certain choices we make — from the important to the innocuous — reverberate over time.

Whether a conscious decision is made or the natural give-and-take of life forces us to choose a path, every single action has a reaction.

I’m uncomfortably familiar with the process, myself. Bad decisions set me back substantially in life. For some people, that’s the only way they learn.

Sometimes, a stern talking-to with a warning not to do it again simply isn’t enough. Sometimes, we’ve really gotta squirm to actually grow. And oh, baby, I squirmed.

Coming to the realization that you’re not only throwing it all away but that the ball has already left your hand and it’s a flat, middle-middle dud is a tough pill to swallow.

Amid the throes of addiction, that particular heaviness has the potential to only drive you further into that pit. The voice in your head saying, “No. Dig up, stupid,” fades out of earshot fast when you’re living out that nightmare.

Not until someone’s ready to change will they actually do so. Many of you have probably seen that story play out, many times. It may have even been you who was dubbed the lost cause. Shit, it was definitely me.

That’s why Matt Harvey’s rugged journey back to Major League Baseball has struck such a tremendous chord with myself and others.

Besides his rise and fall as the Dark Knight of Gotham, which while perpetually endearing to some has become a point of saltiness for others, this is someone who personified lost cause and did so on a national level.

We can’t speak to the exact causes of Harvey’s career derailment (aside from the injuries, of course), but it’s fair to assume that some poor decisions were made.

But, as you, me, Matt, and millions of others have proved millions of times, it’s not necessarily about what you did in your past (within reason, of course), it’s what you do in your future that seals your legacy.

Matt Harvey’s baseball legacy will be forever linked to a missed opportunity to be one of the greats. And he was well on his way. Alas, it didn’t pan out. But, clearly, that doesn’t mean his story ends there.

Applaud Matt Harvey’s return to Citi Field on Wednesday. Applaud his personal growth since tearing up his own lottery ticket so many years ago.

Applaud the good times, the disappointments that followed, and the work he put in to get back here, to this moment. He's earned that much.

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