June 22, 2005

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Palo Alto Online

Matson makes an impact

by Nathan Kurz

It didn't matter that Greg Matson had played in Palo Alto baseball leagues for upwards of 15 years. Last summer, he still had to play his way onto the last city squad he'd ever be a part of -- because Steve Espinoza, then the new coach of the Oaks, had never heard of the kingpin of Palo Alto baseball.

Just before the summer season started, Matson sent an e-mail to Espinoza asking for a spot on the team. He received an invitation to try out.

"I was like 'great, either this guy doesn't know me, or doesn't like me much,' " Matson said. "I just didn't know what to think."

But after just 30 minutes of watching Matson smash baseballs left and right, far and wide, Espinoza soon realized he had clearly been missing out on something.

"He was just knocking the ball all over the field." Espinoza said. "I just didn't know who he was. I'm not a Palo Alto guy. I've been coaching my own teams in Mountain View and Sunnyvale, so I wasn't all that plugged into what he'd been doing."

Espinoza might have been the only one in the whole city who hadn't heard of Matson, a winner at virtually every level of organized Palo Alto baseball.

His Little League team won the city championship, his All-Star team won the sectional title, his Babe Ruth team did the same, and his high school team (Gunn) captured its league title for the first time in over two decades.

And after a second stint with the Oaks this summer, Matson, who's played on at least a dozen different Palo Alto teams in his life, will finally be taking his game to a new locale. In November, he signed with UNC-Greensboro as a pitcher and infielder after two years at West Valley College and will start his Division I college career in the fall.

"This is my last year being home," Matson said. "It's been great to play with all these guys (over the years), but I think I'm ready for the next level. It's been interesting to see how everyone changes."

Matson was 25-6 as a four-year starter at Gunn and earned team MVP honors in 2001 and 2002 but had little interest from colleges after graduating. So he decided to take the junior college route.

"Once things didn't work out so well, my parents and I decided it'd be a good idea to go to West Valley," he said. "I'd be able to get my degree and then make the transition to major college baseball a lot easier."

And after a stellar freshman year (.396 avg., 9 HR, 34 RBI, 4-2, 3.31 ERA) in which he earned second-team all-California Coast Section honors, Matson seemed to be rolling right along.

But right elbow tendonitis in 2004 threw a wrench into his plan, limiting Matson to 22 at-bats and 12 1/3 innings before he applied -- and was granted -- a medical redshirt.

Matson's numbers across the board were down this year (.318 avg., 7 HR, 25 RBI, 2-1, 4.14 ERA), but not, as he claims, because he had been rusty.

"I signed at the end of the early signing period in late November, so I really lost my focus for a bit this year," he said. "I just didn't put enough pressure on myself."

Motivation won't be an issue at NC-Greensboro, where he'll have to earn a starting spot at second base against an incumbent sophomore.

The Spartans recruited Matson primarily as a pitcher, and he figures to get a chance to start, especially after increasing his stamina with the rigorous rehab he underwent to rid himself of the tendonitis.

Espinoza, for one, thinks Matson could excel in either position.

"I struck gold when I found a guy who could be a great fielder at second base and pitch," he said. "Their coach is going to have to make a decision on what he sees. He could go either way, but I think what sets him apart is his hitting."

Espinoza's opinion should count. After all, he was the one whose stellar defense at shortstop was the force behind moving future Hall of Famer Cal Ripken to third base in the late 1970s while both were playing in the Baltimore Orioles' organization.

The modest Espinoza would be the last one to tell you that.

"It's just my small claim to fame," he said.

While Espinoza's pro career never quite panned out, Matson hopes to put himself in a position for the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft in the next two years.

UNC-Greensboro had their ace, Chris Mason, selected in the second round of the recent draft, so Matson figures it's not a bad launching pad for his career.

Matson also, of course, played in several high school games against Fremont's Troy Tulowitzki, who was just selected seventh overall in the draft after playing three years at Long Beach State.

"It's just a matter of opportunity," Matson said. "I'm in a big-time pitching and defense conference. It's really a once-in a lifetime chance."

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