A young fan (above) shared his approval of the Amazin’s ace performance. (Getty Images)
MATT’S AMAZIN’! Matt Harvey, who allowed no runs on three hits while striking out 10 in seven innings, delivers a pitch during the first inning of the Mets’ 5-0 victory over the Phillies. A young fan (inset) shared his approval of the Amazin’s ace performance. (Ron Antonelli; Getty Images (inset))
The Phillies got a dose of Matt Harvey on a mission, an ace angry over portrayals he was focused on things other than baseball. Yesterday Harvey was focused, furious and downright filthy, dominating in a 5-0 Mets win with what may have been the best stuff of his outsized career.
Pitching in front of Mets legend Dwight Gooden — who had called him the best pitcher in the sport — Harvey (8-2) lived up to such lofty praise. Five days after a Men’s Journal piece quoted Harvey talking about women, money and partying, the 24-year-old was all business with seven shutout innings of three-hit ball.
“Everything felt good from the beginning,’’ said Harvey, who struck out 10 and didn’t walk a batter.
In his first start for the Mets since July 8 — and first action since firing two shutout innings in Tuesday’s All-Star Game — there was no rust. Just no-hit-caliber stuff and an intensity born of irritation.
“I read the article and was embarrassed by it,” Harvey said. “The way I was portrayed is not the way I am or the person I am. … I’ve learned a lot of things and kind of learned the hard way. But I learned from it, and you’ve got to move on and deal with it on the field — and fortunately I was able to do that.’’
Oh, he dealt all right. Harvey hit 100 mph in the sixth, threw nasty breaking balls on fastball counts and showed why Gooden told The Post “the sky’s the limit” and Carlos Beltran called him the best he had faced. After Jeremy Hefner got shelled in Friday’s second-half opener, Harvey clinched the series against the Phillies, whom the Mets rarely beat, at Citi Field, where they don’t always win.
“That might be the best stuff I’ve seen him have,” manager Terry Collins said. “In the first inning I thought hopefully he could hang onto it, because I thought he was going to strike out 15 the way he looked.
“Matt was on a bit of a mission to silence a lot of the other stuff that was going on, let everybody know he’s here to pitch, here to play baseball. I think he went out there with a little anger.”
Harvey — a winner for the first time in his last 10 home starts — outpitched Cliff Lee (10-4), who allowed five runs in six innings. The Mets got home runs by David Wright, Marlon Byrd and Juan Lagares.
Wright put them on the board with a first-inning solo shot off the railing in left, ruled a homer after a review. One batter later, Byrd hammered a full-count pitch into the second deck in left, no replay required, for the Mets’ first back-to-back home runs all year.
Lagares — who also had a great running catch to rob John Mayberry Jr. of an extra-base hit in the seventh — added a three-run shot to left in the fourth that needed review. The lead was 5-0, but it might as well have been 50-0 the way Harvey — who did not allow a hit until Chase Utley’s flare with one out in the fourth — was pitching.
“We came off the break and were sleepwalking the first few innings [Friday]. To take that beating and turn around and win two straight against a team that’s been playing great baseball [was good],’’ Wright said. “It was nice to win a series at home, that’s something we need to do better in the second half, take care of business at home. … It helps when you have Harvey on the mound.’’