| Jon Matlack | |
|---|---|
 Matlack in 2012 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1950-01-19)January 19, 1950 (age 75) West Chester, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| July 11, 1971, for the New York Mets | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 15, 1983, for the Texas Rangers | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 125–126 |
| Earned run average | 3.18 |
| Strikeouts | 1,516 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| As player As coach | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Jonathan Trumpbour Matlack (born January 19, 1950) is an American former professionalbaseball player andcoach. He played inMajor League Baseball as a left-handedpitcher from1971 through1983 for theNew York Mets and theTexas Rangers.
The three-timeAll-Star was named the1972National League Rookie of the Year and was a member of the1973 National League pennant-winning New York Mets team. Matlack led the National League in shutouts in 1974 and 1975 and, ranks in the top 10 among Mets pitchers in wins, complete games, ERA, strikeouts, shutouts and innings pitched.[1] In 2020, Matlack was inducted into theNew York Mets Hall of Fame.[1]
Matlack was born inWest Chester, Pennsylvania. He was 17 years old when the Mets drafted him as the fourth overall pick in the1967 Major League Baseball draft out ofHenderson High School in theWest Chester Area School District ofPennsylvania. Hisbaseball career was delayed by hisAmerican Legion Baseball team's tournament. Once he was able to begin hisprofessional baseball career, he was a disappointing 0–1 with a 14.40earned run average for theWilliamsport Mets, but improved to 3–2 with an even 2.00 earned run average later in the1967 season for theFlorida Instructional League Mets.
His rise to stardom began in1968 with theRaleigh-Durham Mets. Matlack went 13–6 with a 2.76 earned run average and 188strikeouts in 173innings pitched. Along with fellow southpawstartersCharlie Hudson and Jerry Bark, he led the Mets to an 83–56 record,[2] and first place in theCarolina League Eastern Division. His rise up the ranks continued in1969, when he went 14-7 to lead the Triple-ATidewater Tides to theInternational League championship.
A rhomboid muscle injury toJerry Koosman opened a spot for a left hander in the Mets'starting rotation during the1971 season. Matlack made his major league debut against theCincinnati Reds in the second game of a July 11doubleheader, and was on the line for the victory when he departed after seven innings. However, the Metsbullpen (including ablown save byTom Seaver) was unable to secure the victory, and Matlack got a no decision in his major league debut.[3]
Matlack was also in line for a victory in his second career start against theSt. Louis Cardinals until the wheels came off in the seventh. After retiring the first two batters, Matlackwalked the next two.Jim Beauchamp followed with adouble to tie the score, and knock Matlack out of the game. Asingle byTed Simmons (selected 6 spots after Matlack in the 1967 draft) scored Beauchamp with the go aheadrun, charging Matlack with the loss in his second career start. For the season, Matlack went 0–3 with a 4.14 ERA in seven appearances (six starts). His finest pitching performance was his last, when he gave up just onerun in eight innings of work against thePittsburgh Pirates.[4]
Matlack made the team out ofspring training in1972, and got off to a 6–0 start with a 1.95 earned run average in the first two months of the season. He ended the season at 15–10 with a 2.32 ERA to win theNational League Rookie of the Year award. On September 30, Matlack gave upRoberto Clemente's 3000th, and final, careerhit.[5][6][7]
On May 8,1973, a vicious line drive off the bat ofMarty Perez of theAtlanta Braves struck Matlack's head so hard that the ball rebounded into the dugout. He suffered a hairline fracture of his skull, but recovered quickly enough to return and pitch six shutout innings at Pittsburgh on May 19. He ended up winning fourteen games for theNational League champion Mets.
Matlack's record dipped to 14–16 in 1973, however, he was 5–1 from August 18 on, helping the Mets capture theNational League East crown. Perhaps his most memorable moment with the Mets occurred on October 7, 1973, when he held the "Big Red Machine" to just two hits in Game 2 of the1973 National League Championship Series. Both hits were by reserve outfielderAndy Kosco.[8]
He was equally impressive in the1973 World Series, giving up just three hits in six innings in game one of theWorld Series, however, theOakland A's scored two runs on aFélix Millánerror in the third, and held on for the 2–1 victory.[9] He won game four, giving up just one run in eight innings.[10] However, he lost the seventh and decisive game of the series 5-2; in the third inning of that game, he gave up two-run home runs to bothBert Campaneris andReggie Jackson—the only two home runs Oakland hit during the Series.[11]
Matlack was anAll-Star for the Mets for the next three seasons, sharingMVP honors in the 1975 game withBill Madlock.[12] In 1976, Matlack went 17–10 with a 2.95 earned run average and a league leading sixshutouts to finish sixth in N.L.Cy Young Award balloting.
In 1977, Matlack's record dipped to 7–15 with a 4.21 earned run average (he had entered the season with a career earned run average of 2.88) for a Mets team that lost 98 games and finished last in the National League East Division. Matlack was dealt from the Mets to theTexas Rangers in the first four-team blockbuster deal in Major League Baseball history on December 8, 1977, that also involved theAtlanta Braves,Pittsburgh Pirates and a total of 11 players changing teams. The Rangers also receivedAl Oliver andNelson Norman from the Pirates. The Mets got from the BravesWillie Montañez and from the RangersTom Grieve andKen Henderson who was sent to New York to complete the transaction three months later on March 15, 1978.Adrian Devine,Tommy Boggs andEddie Miller were traded from the Rangers to the Braves. The Pirates acquiredBert Blyleven from the Rangers andJohn Milner from the Mets.[13][14]
Matlack went 15–13 with a 2.27 earned run average (second toRon Guidry) and earned his first careersave his first season inTexas, however elbow surgery limited him to just 13 starts in 1979. He rebounded to make 34 starts in 1980, one of which was on August 19, when he heldGeorge Brett, who was batting over .400, hitless, ending his 30-gamehitting streak.[15]
| W | L | PCT | ERA | G | GS | CG | SHO | SV | IP | BF | H | ER | R | HR | BAA | K | BB | BB/9 | WP | HBP | Fld% | Avg. |
| 125 | 126 | .498 | 3.18 | 361 | 318 | 97 | 30 | 3 | 2363 | 9789 | 2276 | 835 | 970 | 161 | .254 | 1516 | 638 | 2.4 | 68 | 26 | .952 | .129 |
Matlack compiled 1,023 strikeouts and a 3.03 earned run average as one of the "Big Three" pitchers the New York Mets were built around in the 1970s, along with Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman. However, the Mets were also a light hitting team at the time,[16] and his 82–81 record is not nearly indicative of how well he pitched for the club. On January 28, 2020, the Mets announced that Matlack will be inducted into theNew York Mets Hall of Fame on May 17 in a ceremony atCiti Field.[17]
Matlack retired following the 1983 season. After four years away from the game, he was hired as pitching coach for theSan Diego Padres'Arizona League affiliate. He also coached in theChicago White Sox organization before he was hired as theDetroit Tigers' major league pitching coach in 1996. He was later hired as their minor league pitching coordinator.[19] He spent the 2012 season as the minor league pitching coordinator for the Houston Astros.
Matlack is the son of Ralph Matlack Jr. and Marcella Trumpbour. His parents married in 1947, in Saugerties, New York, and he had four younger siblings. His 2nd great-grandfather, William Trumpbour was postmaster ofWest Camp, New York from 1867 to 1869.
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