While he received a no decision in yesterday’s loss to the Marlins, Steven Matz made a successful return to the mound in his first start back from the disabled list. He pitched 5.1 solid innings while allowing only two runs and striking out six.
“I felt good,” Matz said. “I was falling behind hitters a lot and made it difficult on myself and made a few mistakes, which ultimately cost us the game. I’ll try to build off it.” (Adam Rubin, ESPN)
Even though he made a few mistakes, the encouraging part about yesterday’s outing was that he was able to keep the team in the game despite not having his best stuff.
He was forced to exit early due to a blister, but he appears to be fine for his next scheduled start.
“I think we caught it before it got too bad,” said Matz, who allowed two runs on four hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings in a no-decision. “I used to get it a lot in 2013 when I pitched in Savannah and it was really humid. I guess the skin just softens up when it gets humid.”
Matz says that he could have pitched deeper into the game, but he thought Collins made the right decision by playing it safe.
“It should be good to go,” Matz said. “I think it was the right move. I could have kept on pitching with it, but I think Terry made the right call and shut it down. If it gets worse, that’s when there’s trouble.”
Since Matz is going to be a key player in September and in the future, I can’t fault Collins being cautious either. As Matz has shown all season, he is an extremely talented pitcher who can be an eltie starter for years to come.
He now has an excellent 1.89 ERA and 0.94 WHIP in 19 innings this year with 20 strikeouts. His next start will be against the Braves in Atlanta where he will look to continue his promising rookie season.
