Matzek Makes Final Start One to Savor
By John Klima
June 2, 2009
The final start of left-hander Tyler Matzek’s amateur baseball career was not a lesson in stuff, despite the low 90s his fastball was hitting in the seventh inning of a grueling start. It was instead a lesson in scouting his composure, competitiveness, and just when he needed it most, the sharp curveball he had been looking for all day.
Matzek’s fastball command wasn’t horrible, but it was inconsistent. Its late life helped him, as did the curveball he finally began to get comfortable with in about the sixth inning. His velocity maintained into the seventh inning, working in the low 90s and hitting 93 mph.
But sometimes radar guns should take a backseat to watching how a pitcher responds to adversity. Protecting a 1-0 lead, Matzek pitched around a leadoff double in the seventh inning with the help of his defense. He threw what might have been his best curveball of the game when he got a called third strike for the second out of the inning. Catcher Nolan Clark’s pick-off throw caught the tying run at first base for a game-ending double play.
Matzek’s victory against Jake Marisnick and Riverside Poly wasn’t as much about stuff as it was about savvy. It was less about radar guns and more about making big pitches in big situations. His final start before the 2009 MLB draft showed the ability to work through stretches where he threw mistake pitches. His previous start showed pure stuff. This time, despite the pitching line, it was about the ability to win when getting loose is elusive.
