<
>

Baltimore Orioles add Matt Harvey to major league rotation

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Matt Harvey is back in the major leagues with the Baltimore Orioles.

Baltimore selected the contract of the right-hander on Thursday, one week before its season opener at Boston.

Harvey, who turns 32 on Saturday, gets a one-year, $1 million contract and the chance to earn performance bonuses.

He was 0-3 with an 11.57 ERA in four starts and three relief appearances last year for the Kansas City Royals. He has a 5.40 ERA in three spring training appearances this year, allowing six runs and 10 hits in 10 innings with six strikeouts and one walk.

An All-Star with the New York Mets in 2013, Harvey was derailed by Tommy John surgery in 2013 and an operation in 2016 to correct thoracic outlet syndrome, a condition in which blood vessels or nerves are compressed.

Harvey went 34-37 with a 3.66 ERA for the Mets from 2012 until he was traded to Cincinnati in May 2018. He moved on to the Los Angeles Angels in 2019 and the Royals in 2020. Overall, he is 44-52 with a 4.14 ERA in 144 starts and eight relief appearances.

He earned a job in a rotation headed by All-Star John Means.

Baltimore released left-hander Wade LeBlanc, who was 2-1 with a 2.25 in three spring training appearances covering eight innings. He struck out seven and walked five.

The 36-year-old would have received a $700,000 salary while in the majors if added to the 40-man roster. The Orioles had until March 23 to put him on the roster within 48 hours or release him.

Former Seattle All-Star Felix Hernandez, also at spring training with a minor league contract, left his third outing for the Orioles on March 16 with right elbow discomfort.