70 Facts About Steven Matz

Steven Jakob Matz was born on May 29,1991 and is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball.

Steven Matz has previously played for the New York Mets and Toronto Blue Jays.

Steven Matz made his professional debut in 2012 and spent three years in the Mets' minor leagues, helping lead the Savannah Sand Gnats and Binghamton Mets to championships.

Steven Matz was named the Mets' Organizational Pitcher of the Year in 2014.

Steven Matz made his MLB debut on June 28,2015, breaking several hitting records in his first start.

Related searches

Steven Matz again battled injuries in 2017, making just 13 starts in a season that ended with surgery to address ulnar nerve irritation.

Steven Matz has been involved in several charitable efforts, including starting the charity initiative Tru 32, which honors first responders from the New York City Fire Department, New York City Police Department, and US Military.

Steven Matz was born on May 29,1991, in Stony Brook, New York, the second child of Ron and Lori Matz.

Steven Matz has an older brother, Jonathan, and a younger sister, Jillian.

Ron Steven Matz coached a travel baseball team, and was a service manager at a Jeep dealership in West Islip, New York.

Steven Matz first started playing baseball in the Three Village Little League when he was 8 years old.

Steven Matz attended Ward Melville High School in East Setauket, New York, where he pitched and played first base for the school's baseball team.

Steven Matz played varsity since his freshman year, during which time his fastball averaged 90 miles per hour.

Steven Matz first drew attention from scouts in the New York Mets organization during a baseball showcase tournament in 2008, and their interest in him continued to grow in subsequent years.

Steven Matz enjoyed a high school rivalry with Marcus Stroman, a friend and future New York Mets teammate, who was pitcher for the nearby Patchogue-Medford High School.

Steven Matz was named Newsday's Long Island Player of the Year, and won the Yastrzemski Award as the best high school ballplayer in Suffolk County in his senior year.

Steven Matz was the first player to be drafted directly out of Ward Melville High School.

Steven Matz had scheduled a flight to attend his orientation at Coastal Carolina for the next day.

Steven Matz's recovery lasted two years, during which he rehabbed regularly with fellow Mets organization pitcher Jacob deGrom.

Steven Matz did not make his professional debut until 2012, when he pitched for the Kingsport Mets of the Rookie-level Appalachian League.

Steven Matz initially continued to feel elbow pain, and doctors said they were not sure if the implanted ligament in his elbow had healed, but advised him to test it simply by playing and throwing as hard as he could.

Steven Matz was called up to the New York Mets to join a six-man pitching rotation for the 2015 season, along with Bartolo Colon, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Jon Niese, and Noah Syndergaard.

Steven Matz was the first Long Island high school pitcher to make his MLB debut with the Mets since Ray Searage in 1981.

Steven Matz debuted against the Cincinnati Reds at the Mets' Citi Field on June 28,2015.

Steven Matz's first MLB pitch was a wild pitch to Brandon Phillips, and later in that at-bat Phillips hit a home run.

Related searches

Additionally, using a bat gifted to him by Las Vegas teammate Matt Reynolds, Steven Matz recorded three hits as a batter and drove in four runs.

Steven Matz's first major league at-bat was a two-run double against pitcher Josh Smith.

Steven Matz was the first pitcher in MLB history to record that many hits and RBIs in his debut game, and the 11th player at any position to do so.

Steven Matz was the seventh pitcher since 1914 with three or more hits in his first game, and the first since Jason Jennings of the Colorado Rockies in 2001.

Steven Matz was the first pitcher and the 26th player in any position in the last 100 years with four RBI in his MLB debut.

Steven Matz was the sixth Mets pitcher with four RBI in any game, and the first since Dwight Gooden in 1990.

Shortly afterward, Steven Matz was placed on the disabled list for two months due to a partial tear in the latissimus muscle in his left side.

Steven Matz experienced back soreness caused by spasms behind his right shoulder blade near the end of the season, which forced him to miss his final regular season start and threatened to sideline him again; however, he played through it and remained on the Mets pitching rotation during the team's postseason run.

Steven Matz made three postseason starts: one each in the National League Division Series, National League Championship Series, and World Series.

Steven Matz allowed two runs on seven hits and had five strikeouts, and allowed only one hit in the first four innings.

Mets manager Terry Collins allowed Steven Matz to hit for himself in the fifth inning, then kept him in to pitch in the sixth.

Steven Matz was the only Mets starting pitcher without a postseason win.

Steven Matz made the Mets' opening day roster in 2016 as the fifth starter in the Mets rotation, along with Colon, deGrom, Harvey, and Syndergaard.

Steven Matz was named National League Rookie of the Month for May, becoming only the third Mets player to receive that distinction, along with Justin Turner in 2011 and Jacob deGrom in 2014.

Steven Matz was considered a contender for National League Rookie of the Year.

Steven Matz attempted to continue playing through the bone spur after receiving medical assurances that doing so would not cause additional damage to his elbow.

Steven Matz received a cortisone shot, and the team hoped he could wait until the offseason to have surgery.

Steven Matz received one third-place vote for 2016 National League Rookie of the Year, placing him in a three-way tie for sixth place with Jon Gray and Seung-hwan Oh.

Steven Matz missed the first two months of the 2017 season due to an elbow inflammation.

Steven Matz said the injury was a strained flexor tendon in his elbow, though that diagnosis was not made by the Mets' doctors.

Related searches

Steven Matz performed well in his first five starts, posting a 2.

Steven Matz required season-ending surgery to decompress and reposition the ulnar nerve, a procedure similar to one DeGrom underwent in 2016.

Steven Matz recovered from his injuries in time for the start of the 2018 season, and faced minimal injury troubles during the year.

Steven Matz won a spot in the Mets starting rotation during spring training.

Steven Matz notched a victory against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 13, his first recorded win since June 28,2017, ending a streak of seven consecutive losses and 11 starts with either a loss or no-decision.

Steven Matz hit his first career home run on September 13,2018, against the Miami Marlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara, the first by a Mets pitcher in 2018.

Steven Matz hit another home run on his next start on September 18 against Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola, becoming only the third Mets pitcher to homer in consecutive appearances, along with Tom Seaver in 1972 and Ron Darling in 1989.

Steven Matz allowed 28 stolen bases in 2018, the second-highest amount of any major league pitcher, behind only Mets teammates Syndergaard's 32.

Steven Matz prepared for 2019 by practicing light throwing nearly the entire off-season, starting in mid-October and taking only two weeks off, a method inspired by that of fellow Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom.

Steven Matz became one of only six pitchers in MLB history to face eight batters and retire none, the ninth pitcher since 1908 to pitch less than one inning and allow at least eight runs, and the first Met to do so since Bobby Jones in 1997.

Steven Matz allowed no runs during the first innings of each of those seven starts, bringing his first-inning ERA down to 8.

On July 24,2021, Steven Matz faced the Mets at Citi Field for the first time since being traded to the Blue Jays.

Steven Matz has an average fastball velocity of between 92 and 94 miles per hour, with a peak velocity of 95 miles per hour.

Steven Matz had a strong fastball since an early age, but during his minor league career he made a conscious effort to develop his curveball and work it into his pitching repertoire in place of his slider.

Steven Matz's curve has sweeping glove-side movement and is slightly harder than usual.

Steven Matz is married to Taylor Cain, a Christian music singer and guitar player who performs in the band The Cains with her siblings Madison and Logan Cain.

Steven Matz proposed to Cain on November 12,2016, at a friend's house in Yaphank, New York, on a dock overlooking a pond that he called one of his "favorite places on Long Island".

Steven Matz has an apartment in Long Island City for during the season.

Steven Matz has raised funds for Angela's House, a Long Island-based charity that helps families caring for children with special health care needs.

Steven Matz was the Mets' 2018 nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award, which honors baseball players for community involvement, philanthropy, and positive contributions on and off the field.

Related searches

In May 2018, Steven Matz participated in The Viscardi Center's Celebrity Sports Night to raise funds for the Albertson-based organization, which provides schools and training for children and adults with severe physical disabilities.

Steven Matz considered becoming a firefighter as a child before pursuing a career in baseball, and even considered it as a possible alternative career while dealing with injuries early in his baseball career.

Steven Matz is a Christian and has spoken openly about his faith.

Steven Matz was raised as a non-practicing Lutheran, but after attending a Bible study group during his time in the minor leagues, he joined a non-denominational church, Calvary Chapel, in Queens.

Steven Matz has donated equipment to the Three Village Little League, where he played as a child, and has participated in baseball clinics at his Ward Melville High School alma mater.