Harvey, Mets squabbling about innings limit with critical series vs. Nats on horizon

This is the sign of the times, pitching-wise across baseball: The Mets and the Nationals are battling for a division title and the big news is how much time Mets ace Matt Harvey has spent on the telephone talking to his elbow surgeon, Dr. James Andrews.

The Mets are in Washington for a three-game series beginning Monday. Harvey, 26, the ace of the Mets staff, pitches Tuesday night, but how much will he pitch the rest of the season, and will he be available if the Mets make the postseason?

Harvey is coming back from elbow ligament replacement surgery and has thrown on average 98 pitches in each of his last five starts. He's pitched 166 1/3 innings in 25 starts and now there is dispute about how many innings the Mets will use him this year.

This all started when Harvey's agent, Scott Boras, went public with questions about how the Mets were handling his client.

The Mets say they are aware of Harvey's innings, but there is no strict cap. That's true. They brought the innings limit up after his first start in spring training.

Harvey told reporters Saturday that Dr. Andrews has suggested 180 innings should be his limit.

Generally, though, Harvey deflected questions about whether he was caught off-guard with Boras going public and who will make the ultimate decision about how many innings he pitches.

"It will certainly be handled in-house," Mets manager Terry Collins told reporters. "I'm not sure what is going to happen."

This is similar to 2012 when the Nationals shut down Stephen Strasburg in September amid controversy.

So here are questions:

* Boras' job is to protect his client, but why would he go public and put Harvey into a no-win situation talking about how many innings he should pitch? Harvey was forced to talk about the issue Saturday.

* Does Boras think that the Mets were going to abuse a pitcher that could be a franchise cornerstone for years to come? Or was he just grandstanding, much like he did at the beginning of the season when the Cubs left another of his clients, Kris Bryant, off the opening day roster to slow down his eligibility for free agency?

* What happens if the Mets need Harvey in the final days and he decides that he's not going to pitch because he can't get a doctor's order saying that he should? And how will Mets fans react to that, given the magic of their season?

* Why didn't the Mets make a plan earlier in the season? In 2012, the Nationals said in spring training that they were going to shut down Strasburg, coming back from Tommy John, and then they did after 159 2/3 innings. They put Strasburg's long-term health ahead of a stronger postseason roster. Also in 2012, the Braves used Kris Medlen, coming back from Tommy John, in the bullpen in the first half and that allowed him to be a lights-out starter in the second half.

* At the beginning of the season, why didn't the Mets tell Harvey that he wasn't pitching until April 20? Or, why didn't they have him miss a start before and after the All-Star break, basically giving him the month of July off?

* Why didn't the Mets stick with their plan of using a six-man rotation for at least part of the season? The reason: The pitchers complained and Collins went back to a five-man staff.

Times have changed.

Consider that in 1972, Oakland's Catfish Hunter threw 295 1/3 innings during the regular season and then another 30 innings in the postseason. In 1973, Tom Seaver pitched 290 for the Mets and then another 31 innings in the postseason.

But maybe times haven't changed that much.

The Cardinals' Adam Wainwright had Tommy John surgery in 2011. The next season, he pitched 198 2/3 innings during the regular season with another 15 innings for St. Louis in the postseason.

The Harvey saga is another wrinkle to a dramatic finish in the NL East. The Mets need however many strong starts he can give them.

The Mets come to town with a punishing offense, an excellent but wilting rotation and a bullpen that is in shambles.

The Nationals need a sweep to stay close in the NL East, given they have have no chance to win a wild card slot.

The Nationals and Mets play the final series of the season in New York, but how much meaning will those games have considering the schedules?

The toughest part of the Mets' schedule is three home games against the Yankees. (Baseball couldn't have it any better than the two New York teams playing against each other in September with the postseason on the line. That's never happened before.)

Also, the Mets play the Braves seven times, the Reds four and the Phillies three.

Washington plays 17 of its final 27 games against the Marlins, Phillies and Braves. And they also play the Orioles, which could give new meaning to the rivalry between the two teams.

It's a new age for a variety of reasons, none stranger than Harvey's story.

The race might depend on whether Harvey, the Mets' best pitcher, can get a doctor's slip to finish the rest of the season.