A Thousand Ks, the Long Way

The Long Way

Steven Matz grew up on Long Island a devoted Mets fan, and the Mets took him in the second round of the 2009 draft out of Ward Melville High School in East Setauket. He signed for $895,000 minutes before the deadline, having nearly packed for Coastal Carolina University. Before his senior year, he attended a showcase mainly as a first baseman and unexpectedly clocked 89 mph on the mound, drawing scouts and redirecting his path from college-bound hitter to pitching prospect.

He didn't throw a professional pitch for two years. Tommy John surgery in 2010 repaired a torn elbow ligament, and during the rehab he worked alongside Jacob deGrom. When doctors told him to test the elbow by throwing as hard as he could, he did it in extended spring training, heard a pop of scar tissue, felt no pain, and called his father Ron — who coached his travel baseball and managed the service department at a Jeep dealership — to say he was throwing free again.

A Decade and Change

On September 24, 2026, in a Tampa Bay Rays uniform, Matz recorded his 1,000th career strikeout. He is 35. The number spans 12 seasons, 281 appearances, and five teams: six years with the Mets, one with the Blue Jays, four with the Cardinals, a 2025 stop in Boston, and now the Rays. His career reads 65 wins, 68 losses, a 4.29 ERA across 1,083.2 innings.

Those innings took work. High school coach Lou Petrucci and teammates described a competitor who arrived early and never let success reach his head. In high school, Matz once finished a start despite fingertip blisters that bloodied the baseball, refusing to come out of the game. He was a Baseball America Double-A All-Star in 2014 and a Triple-A All-Star the next year, the last stops before a June 2015 debut.

He married Taylor Cain, a singer in the band CAIN, and together they support charities including his Tru 32 initiative honoring first responders and military members. He still hunts and fishes on Long Island in the offseason, still helps at his father's dealership.

The milestone came in his first year with the Rays, the fifth club on a road that started with the team he grew up rooting for. He is still pitching.

Reporting: Wikipedia, New York Post, New York Daily News. Career and biographical data: MLB StatsAPI, via the Fever engine.