When he stepped into Citi Field around 8:40 a.m. on Sunday, Steven Matz had no way of knowing it would be almost eight hours before he would finally step to the mound in his debut. When he did, it was worth the wait.
After three months at Triple-A Las Vegas, then a rain delay and half of a 13-inning suspended game on Sunday afternoon, Matz drove home four runs, the first pitcher to do so in his Major League debut, and pitched 7 2/3 innings of two-run ball in a 7-2 win over the Reds at Citi Field.
The latest in a line of blue-chip pitching prospects the Mets have rolled out over the past three calendar years, Matz debuted in front of a boisterous local crowd cheering on the Long Island native’s every move. Receiving multiple standing ovations throughout the game, Matz allowed nothing other than a pair of solo homers from Brandon Phillips and Todd Frazier.
“I could definitely hear it,” Matz said of the crowd. “I was just going out there not trying to change much. Just going out there, trying to win a game.”
But his most valuable contributions came at the plate, particularly for a Mets team that has struggled to score all month. Matz doubled home New York’s first two runs off Reds starter Josh Smith in his first career plate appearance, singled to extend a rally off Smith in the fifth inning, and drove home another two runs with a single off Pedro Villarreal in the sixth.
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