Skip to main content

ProspectNation 2011: #16 Scott Mathieson- RHP


Scott Mathieson has been a name that has intrigued Phillies fans for several years. A 17th round draft pick in the 2002 amateur draft, out of Vancouver, BC, the right-handed Mathieson rose through the Phillies minor league ranks as a starting pitcher and made his Major League debut with Philadelphia in June, 2006.

That season, Mathieson was on the opening day roster for the Double A Reading Phillies. In 19 starts, Mathieson posted a 10-3 record with a 3.40 ERA and 99 strike outs in 92 2/3 innings pitched. Those efforts earned him a promotion to Triple A Scranton-Wilkes Barre where he went 3-1 with a 3.93 ERA and 36 strike outs in 34 1/3 innings. With such solid stats, the Phillies rewarded Mathieson with another promotion.

The 6-feet-3, 200-pounder stepped up another level but didn't have the same results, allowing opponents to hit .312 and going 1-4 with a 7.47 ERA in 9 games, 8 of which were starts, with Philadelphia. By September that season, however, he was sidelined with a torn elbow ligament and required Tommy John surgery.

With some bad luck, Mathieson, who represented the Phillies in the MLB Futures Game in 2005, became a rare case in the currently rather common world of big time elbow surgery, when he required an ulnar nerve transposition procedure following 7 rehab outings in August of 2007. By the start of the following season, Mathieson needed to go under the knife for a third time, with a second Tommy John surgery. All together, his rehabilitation process was considerably long, due to his recurring arm trouble.

On the comeback trail, Mathieson pitched at three levels of the Phillies' system in 2009 and dominated. Combined between time spent with the Rookie level Gulf Coast League Phillies, High A level Clearwater and Double A Reading, Mathieson posted a 4-0 record with an ERA of 0.84 and struck out 34 batters while allowing only one HR in 32 innings pitched. Mathieson followed up his exceptional 2009 regular season with a solid collection of outings in the Arizona Fall League.

As he continued climbing back toward the Majors, exclusively as a reliever, Mathieson's fastball range was clocked in the high 90's, which is well up from the 92-93 MPH that he used to average when he initially broke into big leagues.

In 2010, Mathieson, whose pitching repertoire also includes a good slider and a change up that Ryan Madson helped him improve last spring, shined for the Phils' Triple A affiliate, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. In 55 games there, he posted a 3-6 record with a 2.80 ERA and 26 saves in 54 games while holding opponents to a .212 batting average.

With the exceptional efforts in the minors and improved velocity, the Phillies recalled Mathieson to the big club in June last season. In a mop-up assignment during an interleague game against Minnesota, Mathieson had a rough outing that got him designated for assignment shortly after. However, the former ace for the Team Canada World Baseball Classic team remained a Phillie and returned to the active roster as a September call up. Mathieson had one more MLB outing in 2010, a 1 2/3 inning appearance against the Brewers in which he allowed an unearned run.

Despite the ups and downs that Mathieson has dealt with, he remains a hurler that could contribute for the Phillies, in a relief role, in the near future.
_____________________________________________________

You can follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter by clicking HERE.

Connect with PhoulBallz.com on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Jersey Shore clinches playoff berth on final day of regular season

Ottto Kemp, image- Jay Floyd With an extra-inning victory over first-half division champions Hudson Valley on Sunday, the Class A Advanced Jersey Shore BlueClaws clinched the team's first playoff appearance since 2018, winning the second-half division title. Key performers in the BlueClaws' clincher were righty hurler Jason Ruffcorn, who threw three innings of relief to earn the victory and third baseman Otto Kemp, notched three hits, a walk, two stolen bases and plated the game winning run in the 11th inning on a sacrifice fly.  On top of that, Kemp, who turned 24-years-old on Saturday, made an absolute game-saving defensive play to help the club hold their lead in the bottom of the 11th frame. One of Jersey Shore's most consistent performers all season long has been right-handed reliever Cam Wynne.  The Phillies' 20th round draft pick in 2021 out of Nebraska.  In 34 appearances, one start, the 24-year-old tallied a 1-1 record with one save, a 2.44 ERA and a .190 batti

PhoulBallz Interview: BlueClaws OF Justin Crawford

Justin Crawford w/ junior reporter Evan At the age of 19, outfielder Justin Crawford has played his way into the conversation of being considered as one of baseball's top prospects. The son of four-time MLB All-Star Carl Crawford, Justin has looked every bit as impressive as his position as the 17th overall draft selection last year would have most fans thinking he should be.  He opened the season with Class A Clearwater where, in 69 games, he notched a .344/.399/.478 slash line.  And since mid-August when he was promoted to Class A Advanced Jersey Shore, the younger Crawford has posted a .300/.364/.440 line.  He's also stolen 44 bases in 52 attempts overall. And while the BlueClaws enter the final week of the regular season 1/2 game out of first place in their division, I spoke with Justin Crawford about the team's hopes of making the postseason for the first time since 2018. I also asked Justin about the similarities and differences between his skillset and his father'

RHP Pipkin headed to AFL after hot August

After completing what was easily the best month of his career, righty hurler Dominic Pipkin is ready to face the tough competition of the prominent Arizona Fall Leage.   Pipkin, who was the Phillies' 9th round draft selection in 2018, has had moderate success in his five years as a pro, posting a 4.93 ERA, a 7.6 K/9 mark and a .260 batting average against mostly at the lower levels on the minors. After missing time this year with an unspecified ailment, the six-foot-four 170-pounder proved to be healthy as he dominated AA competition in nine appearances with the Reading Fightin Phils during August.  Pipkin's impressive production resulted in a 1-0 record with a save and a 0.96 ERA while striking out eight and walking three in 9 1/3 innings. The California native says his efforts to improve have helped him touch 100 MPH on the radar gun, while his fastball velocity is mostly around 96 MPH.   Pipkin's arsenal includes that improved fastball as well as a slider while his curve