Redbirds' Mathews not as impressed by his 200-K milestone as the rest of us
As Quinn Mathews puts the finishing touches on an exceptional rookie campaign, he also joined some elite company. MLB's No. 80 overall prospect reached the 200-strikeout plateau with his third punchout and finished with five over six innings for Triple-A Memphis on Thursday night. The RedBirds fell to visiting Durham,
As Quinn Mathews puts the finishing touches on an exceptional rookie campaign, he also joined some elite company.
MLB's No. 80 overall prospect reached the 200-strikeout plateau with his third punchout and finished with five over six innings for Triple-A Memphis on Thursday night. The RedBirds fell to visiting Durham, 4-0, at AutoZone Park.
Mathews -- who has fanned 202 in 143 1/3 innings across four levels this year -- joined D-backs right-hander Brandon Pfaadt as the only Minor Leaguers to reach the milestone since 2011. Pfaadt punched out 218 batters for Triple-A Reno and Double-A Amarillo in 2022.
Mathews tallied strikeouts in the second and third innings before flinging a nasty backfoot slider on a 2-2 pitch to Osleivis Basabe (Rays) for his 200th K to open the fourth. The 23-year-old followed up with another punchout and added one more in the sixth. It was just the third time in 26 starts Mathews failed to record as many strikeouts as innings pitched.
As impressive as the feat was, it didn't hold much significance for the Cardinals' No. 3 prospect, who is more focused on his overall results.
"[The 200th strikeout] really wasn't terribly important to me," Mathews said. "Every out counts the same, even as a strikeout pitcher. Whether it's a first-pitch soft-contact ground ball or three straight heaters blowing a guy away. In today’s game, strikeouts are important, but at the end of the day, it's an out and that’s what is most important to me."
Mathews' whirlwind season has been all the more impressive considering the amount of professional experience he had entering 2024 -- zero. St. Louis nabbed the Stanford product in the fourth round of the 2023 Draft after he finished his collegiate career second in the nation in strikeouts (158) behind Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes. The Cardinals kept him off the mound after he tossed 124 2/3 innings in college that year, delaying his debut until this April with Single-A Palm Beach.
Mathews' second pro start -- 11 strikeouts and one hit allowed over five scoreless frames on April 12 -- was a harbinger of things to come. The 6-foot-5, 188-pounder fanned a career-high 13 two starts later and departed Palm Beach for High-A Peoria with 52 K's across 30 2/3 innings.
Mathews rolled on in the Midwest League -- posting a .160 average-against and 58 strikeouts in 43 2/3 innings -- earning a spot in the All-Star Futures Game (where he struck out a pair) and another promotion to Double-A Springfield in July. The native of Mission Viejo, Calif., was nearly untouchable in four August starts, surrendering two runs in 25 2/3 innings while fanning 40, including a trio of double-digit strikeout performances.
Mathews headed to Memphis on Aug. 28 after his third promotion. He has taken his spot among the best lefty-throwing prospects in the game, checking in at No. 4 on Pipeline's southpaw rankings and finding himself one step from the Majors a mere 14 months after he was drafted.
📩 CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO BEN'S BIZ
"Every level has taught me something different," Matthews said. "As soon as you think you’ve got an idea of what to do, the hitters at the next level tell you differently.
"Hitting is challenging ... if you go 3-for-10, you’re a pretty good hitter. As a pitcher, you know that too. Sometimes you make pitches and they hit it, and sometimes you throw it right down the middle and they miss it. It's the way it goes."
Although his numbers in the hitter-friendly International League have leveled off, Mathews sports a 2.76 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP after 26 starts. He's produced seven outings with 11 or more K's and boasts a K/9 of 12.7.
"I didn't pitch my game the first few [Triple-A] starts," Mathews explained. "Tonight, I can say that I competed in the zone. There were a few pitches or at-bats where I might have executed better, but it was a step forward for me, to be sure."
Michael Avallone is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @MavalloneMiLB.
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between
Prospect Peña quietly drawing raves in Brewers' farm system
PHOENIX – Jesús Made was at the top of the Brewers’ lineup for Sunday’s 9-7 loss to the Reds in the finale of MLB’s four-day Spring Breakout, a fitting perch when you consider that the 17-year-old infielder is under a bright spotlight as MLB Pipeline’s No. 55 prospect. Made could
Brecht -- in 1st outing since '24 Draft -- wows at Spring Breakout
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Sunday's Spring Breakout showcase was the perfect unveiling for Rockies No. 5 prospect Brody Brecht. A right-handed pitcher from the University of Iowa whom the Rockies selected 38th overall last summer, Brecht had a nice collegiate resume, an interesting backstory as a former wide receiver for the
Braves prospects show promise in Spring Breakout
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- As Terry Pendleton prepared to serve as the manager of the Braves prospect team that played the Tigers prospect team in a Spring Breakout game on Sunday afternoon, he said fans should be patient with John Gil and Luis Guanipa, a pair of teenagers who have
Yanks' Lagrange flashes triple-digit heat in Spring Breakout
SARASOTA, Fla. -- There was an audible “Ooh” from the crowd at Ed Smith Stadium, and Carlos Lagrange quickly glanced beyond the right-field wall, checking the velocity of the pitch he’d just thrown in Saturday’s 5-4 Spring Breakout loss to the Orioles. It had registered in the triple digits, and
Bradfield dedicates Spring Breakout performance to late friend
SARASOTA, Fla. -- It was about more than playing in the national spotlight. More than the dinner bet placed with an old college teammate earlier in the month. More than a game. As Enrique Bradfield Jr. slid home to score a run during the first inning of Saturday night’s Spring