Game 1 pitching preview: Matt Harvey versus Edinson Volquez

Matt Harvey is the perfect player for New York. First, he’s good; that’s important. New Yorkers don’t put up with failure very well. Then there’s the personality, the chip on his shoulder going back to his draft status coming out of high school, the raw power of his electric stuff and the attitude that New Yorkers love, just enough on this side of cocky. So New York Mets fans loved him. And then they didn’t. One fan called him the worst Met ever.

Luckily, New Yorkers also are quick to forgive, and early September, when the whole innings-limit debate for Harvey reached a heated crescendo, now seems very long ago. "He was put in a real tough situation," manager Terry Collins said Monday. "I…