Mack Ade August 31 at 12:44pm Okay, fans, we're moving on to one of the big guns, last year's number one draft pick, Hicksville's own Steve Matz. Steve, how's everything doing out on the island? .
Matz: - It's Stony Brook. Hicksville is Cam Maron. But everything is going very well out here. I have been rehabbing in Garden City at the Professional Athletic Performance Center and my arm is coming along very well. .
Mack: Stony Book, Hicksville... it's all the same to a Cold Spring Harbor guy... tell us about that wonderful day called draft day.... .
Matz: - Draft day was awesome. A lot of my family are big Mets fans so it was an exciting day for the whole family.
Mack: - I remember that great pic (see above) you had taken with your parents on the field at Citi Field... so... I ask this question to all the high rounders... what was the first thing you bought with the bonus money? .
Matz: - The first thing I bought with my bonus was an F 150 Raptor, its a 2010 special addition Ford pick up truck.
Mack: - Ha ha... got news for ya.... 75% of all bonus babies say "truck". So, you head down to Lucy, start pitching in extended camp, and... then what happens?
Matz: - I pitched two innings, gave up a few walks, a few hits, and get out of the two innings. I was done for the day, and then, that night, every time I extend my arm my it was really tight and it got me worried. I was just hoping it was sore, and then a day and half later I try to throw a bull pen and its like nothing was on my pitches. So the pitch coach (Rick Waits) asked if something was wrong and I pointed to the spot and he sent me in to get it checked out by the trainers.
Mack: - You went under the knife... was it TJS, and, on a scale of 1-10, how's the arm now? .
Matz: - Yeah. Luckily, when they went in there, everything else looked good. No bone spurs or chips or anything, and right now it feels without throwing, I would say, about an 8.5. So close to feeling normal like nothing ever happened .
Mack: - Last question Steve. I'm sure your short term goals for 2011 is to simply get back on the mound and throw your first professional pitch. My question is simple... on what Mets team do you hope to end the 2011 season with? .
Matz: - I would love to play in Brooklyn. It's short season and that's just about when I'll be back. Also, it's close to home which would be awesome. It's one of the cooler places to play in the whole minor league system. Hopefully everything will go smoothly, but that's just my preference. I know the Mets have a good handle on where they put players so ultimately I'll be happy anywhere.
Mack: - Thanks Steve, and the best of everything this off-season. I'll see you in the spring in extended camp.
Old stuff on Steve:
5-11-09 from: - http://www.baseballrumormill.com/tags/steven-matz - Steven Matz: The LHP out of Ward Melville High School (East Setauket, NY) has produced "average" velocity consistently ranging from 88-92, but has touched 94 and scouts believe he can get stronger and thus throw faster. His curveball is projected to be above-average due to good spin and arm speed and he's also thrown a change-up on occassion, but with little consistency. Matz will be heading to Coastal Carolina.
5-11-99 from: - http://www.baseballamerica.com/ : - The consensus top prep pitching prospect in the Northeast, Matz offers plenty of projection as well as good present stuff. For most of the spring, he sat in the 89-91 mph range, but he routinely ran his fastball up to 93-94, and the pitch has some glove-side life. Scouts particularly like the way he attacks hitters inside with his heater. He also shows a solid-average changeup with good deception that sometimes rates as plus. He began throwing a slider midway through the season, but most scouts prefer his 73-75 mph three-quarters curveball, which flashes average to plus but more often rates as a below-average offering at this stage. Matz has a big, projectable frame at 6-foot-3, 185 pounds, but there are some questions about his durability because he had trouble staying healthy for a full season until this year. He also needs to work on his delivery, as he tends to cut himself off and has a head jerk. There is some risk with Matz, but he has enough upside that some team is likely to take him in the top three rounds and buy him out of a commitment to Coastal Carolina.
5-24-10: - http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/mets/mets-prospect-matz-has-tommy-john-surgery-1.1918730?qr=1&qr=1 - East Setauket's Steven Matz, the Mets' top pick in last year's draft, will undergo Tommy John surgery Tuesday afternoon at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan. Matz, 18, felt pain in his left elbow during an extended spring game last week in Port St. Lucie and was sent back to New York for more tests and an MRI, which revealed an 80 percent tear in the ligament
2011 Projection: - There's no rush here. The Mets are loaded with lower level SPs and it simply takes time to recover from TJS. The Mets have 800,000 reasons to use 2011 as a year to keep Steve on a strict pitch count. I too expect him to play Brooklyn, not because he's from New York, but the Mets will want to keep an eye on him there. Expect him back around June with a couple of weeks on the GCL squad so Rick Waits can spend some quality time with him, followed by a planeride to Coney...
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