Steven Matz saw a higher pitch count and more innings on the mound in his final intrasquad scrimmage start on Monday night, and the results were just what he wanted.
“I felt today was probably the best I’ve felt as far as my pitches go,” he told reporters via Zoom afterward. “I felt like I was commanding the ball better today. So I feel good, everything feels crisp and just going to continue with my regular routine and not really change a thing [heading into the season]. Feel like I’m in a good spot.”
Matz said that Luis Rojas has told him where he will be in the rotation, and though it most likely is third behind Jacob deGrom and Marcus Stroman, he wouldn’t say. Rojas was also mum about that conversation with the lefty, but he did elaborate on what has impressed him from Matz during his recent outings.
Rojas discussed the “carry” on Matz’s fastball, or in other words the spin rate of that particular pitch. For Matz, he likes to use that fastball up in the zone to get swings and misses because it has good carry and appears to rise. Jacob deGrom is a master at this as well.
Rojas has seen a better velocity on Matz’s fastball, which in turn creates better carry. That’s something he believes will help him a lot this season.
“First, I want to say the velo,” Rojas explained. “Having Matz in the minors a couple of years and just the carry on the fastball and how it is now and velo differential from his repertoire to that fastball, I was really pumped to see it. I got really pumped when I saw that. Mid-90s to even upper 90s at times, and then him showing that slower curveball, that velo differential… he put some work [in] but that was the one thing that caught my eye.”
Matz’s better demeanor on the mound, not getting too frustrated when things aren’t clicking and looking more poised, is another standout feature of his summer camp.
When Matz does get on the mound for the first time in the regular season, he is looking forward to showing everyone what he has been working on this offseason. But he is also intrigued by “what the competitiveness is like out there.” During those late-inning crunches and close games, home teams feed off that fan energy, but there needs to be a different way to find that edge.
Overall, Matz knows that it’s “me and the hitter” at the end of the day, and his stuff on the bump is right where he needs it to be to win that battle every time.