| Matt Hague | |
|---|---|
 Hague with thePittsburgh Pirates in 2012 | |
| Pittsburgh Pirates – No. 52 | |
| First baseman | |
| Born: (1985-08-20)August 20, 1985 (age 39) Bellevue, Washington, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| Professional debut | |
| MLB: April 7, 2012, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
| NPB: March 25, 2016, for the Hanshin Tigers | |
| Last appearance | |
| MLB: October 1, 2015, for the Toronto Blue Jays | |
| NPB: June 3, 2016, for the Hanshin Tigers | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .226 |
| Home runs | 0 |
| Runs batted in | 7 |
| NPB statistics | |
| Batting average | .231 |
| Home runs | 2 |
| Runs batted in | 11 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
Matthew Donald Hague (born August 20, 1985) is an American professionalbaseballfirst baseman andcoach. He is the hitting coach for thePittsburgh Pirates ofMajor League Baseball (MLB).
Hague playedcollege baseball at theUniversity of Washington andOklahoma State. Between 2012 and 2016, he played in MLB for the Pirates andToronto Blue Jays, and inNippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for theHanshin Tigers. He has coached for the Blue Jays before being hired by the Pirates.
Hague was raised inKent, Washington and attendedKentwood High School inCovington, Washington.[1] For his contributions to the high school baseball team, which finished second in the state ofWashington, he was named to the Class 4A All-State First Team as apitcher and Second Team as anoutfielder.[2][3]
Hague began hiscollege baseball career at theUniversity of Washington in 2005, where he played for theWashington Huskies baseball team for three seasons. He began his tenure with the Huskies as a backupthird baseman andoutfielder,[3] but he also pitched in relief. TheCleveland Indians drafted Hague in the 11th round (347th overall) of the2007 Major League Baseball draft, but he opted not to sign. After the 2007 season, he playedcollegiate summer baseball with theFalmouth Commodores of theCape Cod Baseball League and was named a league all-star.[4][5][6] He transferred toOklahoma State University–Stillwater for his senior season, where he played for theOklahoma State Cowboys baseball team.[7]
ThePittsburgh Pirates selected Hague in the ninth round, with the 264th overall pick, of the2008 Major League Baseball draft as a third baseman. He began his professional career that season with theState College Spikes of the Low–ANew York–Penn League,[8] before he was promoted to theHickory Crawdads of the Single–ASouth Atlantic League. In 2009, Hague played for theLynchburg Hillcats of the High–ACarolina League, where he began playing first base. That year, he finished third in the Carolina League with a .293batting average.[9]
Hague was promoted to theAltoona Curve of the Double–AEastern League in 2010, where he was named the team's Iron Man.[10] Hague batted .309 with 12home runs and 75runs batted in (RBIs) during the 2011 season with theTriple-AIndianapolis Indians, leading theInternational League in hits and receiving midseason and postseason International League All-Star honors.[11] However, he did not receive a September call-up to Pittsburgh as the team already had a number of first basemen and outfielders.[12] He was added to the Pirates' 40-man roster to protect him from theRule 5 draft after the 2011 season.[11]
After impressing the Pirates with his power in 2012spring training,[13] Hague made the Pirates'Opening Day roster. He made his MLB debut on April 7.[14] He recorded his first MLB hit on April 8, a pinch-hit RBI single offPhiladelphia Phillies pitcherKyle Kendrick.[15] He played in 30 games for the Pirates in 2012, batting .229 with seven RBIs and a stolen base.[16] He spent the rest of the season with Indianapolis, where he batted .283 with four home runs, 54 RBIs, and three stolen bases.[16] He also spent the entire 2013 season with Indianapolis, batting .285 with eight home runs, 69 RBIs, and four stolen bases.[16] He began the 2014 season with Indianapolis, playing in 93 games and batting .267, with 14 home runs, 66 RBIs, and a stolen base.[16] He also appeared in three games for Pittsburgh, going 0-for-2 at the plate.[16] The Pirates placed him onwaivers.[citation needed]
On August 18, 2014, theToronto Blue Jays claimed Hague off waivers and assigned him to the Class AAABuffalo Bisons of the International League.[17] In 13 games, he batted .377 for Buffalo with a home run and 10 RBIs.[16] The Blue Jaysdesignated him for assignment on September 2,[18] but added him back to their 40-man roster on September 28.[citation needed]
Hague spent most of the 2015 season with Buffalo[16] and played for the International League in the 2015Triple-A All-Star Game on July 15.[citation needed] On August 17, the Blue Jays called Hague up.[19] He debuted for Toronto on August 22, coming on as a pinch hitter against theLos Angeles Angels of Anaheim and striking out. Following the game, Torontooptioned him back to Buffalo.[20] On September 1, theInternational League named him the 2015 Most Valuable Player;[citation needed] for the season, he had batted .338 with 11 homers and 92 RBI and stole five bases for the Bisons.[21]
The Blue Jays recalled Hague on September 8 at the conclusion of theminor-league season to provide an extra bat off the bench during the Blue Jays' pennant race. He finished the season having appeared in 10 games with the Blue Jays, batting 3-for-12 (.250) with a double.[16][22]
Following the 2015 season, the Blue Jays reached an agreement to sell Hague's contract to theHanshin Tigers ofNippon Professional Baseball for $300,000.[23] He signed with them on November 30, 2015,[24] and spent the 2016 season playing inJapan for Hanshin.[citation needed]
On December 21, 2016, Hague signed a minor league contract with theMinnesota Twins.[25] He received an invitation to 2017spring training.[26] The Twins assigned him to the Triple–ARochester Red Wings of the International League, where he spent the entire 2017 season, batting .297 with 10 home runs, 65 RBI, and eight stolen bases for the Red Wings.[16] Hague elected free agency following the season on November 6, 2017.[27]
On December 12, 2017, Hague signed a minor league contract with theSeattle Mariners.[28] At the beginning of the 2018 season, the Mariners assigned him to the Class AAATacoma Rainiers of thePacific Coast League,[16] where he appeared in 17 games and batted .226 with 13 RBI[16] before the Mariners released him on April 26, 2018.[citation needed]
On April 27, 2018, Hague signed a minor-league contract with theWashington Nationals.[29] The Nationals assigned him to the Class AAASyracuse Chiefs of theInternational League.[16] He played in 28 games for the Chiefs, hitting .242 with five doubles, a home run, and seven RBIs[16] before the Nationals released him on June 13, 2018.[16][30]
On January 31, 2020, Hague joined theToronto Blue Jays organization as a hitting coach for theHigh–ADunedin Blue Jays.[31] On March 8, 2021, Hague was named the hitting coach for the Double–A affiliate of the Blue Jays, theNew Hampshire Fisher Cats.[32] On February 15, 2023, Hague was announced as the new hitting coach for the Triple–ABuffalo Bisons.[33]
On January 14, 2024, the Blue Jays promoted Hague to the role of major league assistant hitting coach.[34][35]
On November 13, 2024, thePittsburgh Pirates hired Hague to serve as their hitting coach.[36]
Hague and his wife Erica (née Wise) were married inNew Orleans,Louisiana, in November 2015.[37]
