New York Mets to start Matt Harvey in NLCS opener

New York Mets right-hander Matt Harvey will start Game 1 of the National League Championship Series against the Chicago Cubs.

Harvey faced the Cubs only once in 2015 and went seven scoreless innings.

"We got here because we have very, very good pitching. In the middle of summer when we weren't scoring any runs, we were still in games. We'd still win close games because our pitching kept us in it," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "Our starters, our bullpens, they're young, yeah, they're inexperienced. But they've got quality stuff, and that still pays off. That's why we've said all along, no matter what the outcome of the season is, the light at the end of the tunnel is here, and this is going to be a bright future for this organization."

The Cubs announced Thursday that Jon Lester would start Game 1 and Jake Arrieta in Game 2.

The Mets advanced to the first NLCS since 2006. They did so by beating Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke, two of baseball's top pitchers, in the first and final games of the series.

"We came into a five-game series and you saw Kershaw twice and Greinke twice. That may not be fair," Collins said Thursday night. "But we'll take what we got. We got the wins that we needed, and we're going to go party for a little while, and take a day off and get ready for the NLCS and it will be a lot of fun."