New York Mets ace Matt Harvey is doing everything he can to avoid having to undergo Tommy John surgery on his partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, but the final verdict will most likely come from his visit to renowned surgeon Dr. James Andrews this Monday.
Harvey was diagnosed with the partial UCL tear back on Aug. 26 and was shut down for the remainder of the season. Harvey, 24, is seeking many different opinions from players, friends and doctors, and is evaluating what he can do to avoid surgery, according to ESPN.
The Mets phenom met with Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Roy Halladay recently as well, because Halladay once had a partial tear but didn't require surgery and recovered nicely. It's unclear how similar their two injuries actually are.
Harvey started for the National League All-Star team this past July at Citi Field and had been enjoying a great season until the injury ended it, but he says he feels fine right now.
"Everything feels fine. My arm feels great," Harvey insisted to ESPN Tuesday while visiting a firehouse in midtown Manhattan that was effected by the events of September, 11, 2001 with teammates David Wright and Zack Wheeler, along with Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon. "I'm still very optimistic about everything. But I'm not a doctor, so we'll see what happens."
After Mets doctors diagnosed him with the tear back in August, Harvey was slated to have a follow-up MRI two-to-three weeks later, but the test hasn't happened yet, according to ESPN.
Harvey told ESPN Tuesday that he's looking to do anything he can to avoid having to undergo the operation, as long as he's medically advised to do so. Dr. Andrews' evaluation on Monday will be key to finding out if Harvey can recover through rehabilitation or if he'll have to go under the knife and miss most, if not all, of the 2014 season.
Harvey indicated that Monday's visit to Dr. Andrews won't be the be-all end-all for his decision.
ESPN reports that Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said he is prepared to go on next season without Harvey in case he gets the worst news possible, and Harvey has said if he does have to get the surgery, he's hopeful to be back by next September in order to be fully ready for the 2015 season.
Harvey acknowledged the fact that he hasn't met with Mets team doctors a second time after the initial diagnosis.
"I don't think we've gotten that far yet," Harvey said about returning to see Mets doctors, according to ESPN. "I'm going to wait to see on Monday how that goes with Dr. Andrews. I'm not going to make an immediate decision while I'm down there. Whether it's another week or whatnot, I'm going to talk to as many people as I can."
ESPN reports that Harvey has just been riding an exercise bike and icing his elbow since the injury fell upon him. Harvey hasn't pitched since Aug. 24, and was 9-5 this season with a 2.27 ERA through 26 starts with 191 strikeouts.
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