The Cincinnati Reds, who acquired Matt Harvey from the New York Mets earlier this week, will send the right-hander to the mound on Friday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Harvey will be limited to only a handful of innings while he gets his arm back into shape.

"At times there were some pretty negative thoughts about where my career was," he said. "But I think fighting through that and throwing the ball the way I have been, in bullpens and in between outings -- it's in there. It just needs to come out. I just need to relax and let it happen."

Harvey posted a 2.53 ERA in 427 innings from 2012 to 2015, but has collected a 5.93 ERA in 212 1/3 innings over these last three years.