All About Baseball
MLB Comeback Players of The Year: Matt Harvey And Prince Fielder
Two well deserved awards.
Over the past nine seasons, MLB has awarded the Comeback Players of the Year award too deserving ball players that worked their way back from either injury or a lost season to become standouts the next year.
From 2005 to the present, twenty players have been awarded with the honors, and in 2015 the newest duo to be added to the group are New York Mets Ace pitcher Matt Harvey and Texas Rangers first baseman Prince Fielder.
ALEX TRAUTWIG/MLB PHOTOS
Harvey, who missed the entire 2014 season after recovering from Tommy John surgery, posted a 13-8 record, with a 2.71 ERA, and 188 strikeouts in 189.1 innings.
The Mets right hander, also helped lead the New York to the postseason and in four games he was 2-0, with a 3.04 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 26.2 innings.
He pitched an epic Game 5 of the World Series in New York; with the Mets leading 2-0, Harvey tossed eight shutout innings, allowing four hits, while striking out nine, before succumbing to the Kansas City Royals in the ninth, giving up a run scoring double to end his night.
Harvey tells MLB.com:
“Leading into the season, you don’t know what to expect. Obviously going from zero innings, I couldn’t be happier. I think the best thing and the most positive thing is how I feel after the 200-inning mark, and quite honestly, it’s probably better than I did at the 100 mark. For me, the season was obviously an extreme success, just being healthy, playing, going out there every fifth day or whenever it was and being healthy and being where we are now. I don’t think anybody’s happier at that than I am.”
Foxsports.com
Prince Fielder was traded to the Texas rangers from the Detroit Tigers prior to the 2014 season,but May 16th was his final game, as he would miss the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery on a herniated disc in his neck.
In 2015, Fielder rebounded and played in 158 games, batting .305, and belting 23 home runs, while driving in 98 RBI’s. Fielder was a key component in helping the Rangers to overcome a hot start by the Houston Astros, only to take over first place on September 15th and never looked back.
Fielder on MLB Network:
“It’s really awesome. It was a lot of hard work to get back and be able to play. … I kind of felt I’d be confident to at least be able to play. But I didn’t know how I’d play.”
Both players fulfilled expectations in 2015, and for their hard work, they enjoyed extra time in the second season. A great accomplishment for two players that together have impacted the game, their respective teams and revived their future in the game.
Previous Winners:
Casey McGehee and Chris Young (2014); Francisco Liriano and Mariano Rivera (2013); Fernando Rodney and Buster Posey (2012); Jacoby Ellsbury and Lance Berkman (2011); Liriano and Tim Hudson (2010); Aaron Hill and Chris Carpenter (2009); Cliff Lee and Brad Lidge (2008); Carlos Peña and Dmitri Young (2007); Jim Thome and Nomar Garciaparra (2006); and Jason Giambi and Ken Griffey, Jr. (2005).
David Conde
David is the Founder and Co-Owner of Legends On Deck and Co-Host of the Legends On Deck Podcast. A lifelong sports fan with a special passion for the New York Mets and New York Knicks, David has spent more than a decade covering the sports he loves. From 2010 to 2014, he served as a Senior Editor for MetsMerized Online and Mets Minors, and in June 2014 fulfilled a lifelong dream by covering the New York Mets at Citi Field as a credentialed writer. As Legends On Deck has expanded beyond baseball, David has enjoyed diving into more sports, learning along the way and sharing those stories with readers and listeners. Married for over 27 years and the proud father of two adult sons, he continues to connect with sports fans through Legends On Deck, the podcast and social media.
