2008 Woodie Awards
Fighting Fire with Fire
He Came from Longview with a Reputation. Now, Chris Matlock is Backing it Up.
Ryan Gibbs: Digitalburg.com
Issue date: 3/27/08 Section: Sports
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Junior pitcher Chris Matlock was named MVP after Longview Community College won the 2007 National Junior College Athletic Association Division-II World Series.
"It felt pretty good," Matlock said about his award. "At the end, they said 'Tournament MVP - Chris Matlock.' I was like 'Oh, all right.'"
The 6-foot-2-inch right-hander had to adjust his pitching technique after he tore his rotator cuff as a sophomore in high school. Matlock switched to a submarine delivery, a confusing look for many batters where the pitcher releases the ball in a sideways position.
"I've just stayed with sidearm ever since," he said.
A tale of two seasons
Matlock did not know what to expect when he enrolled at Longview before the 2006 season. He just wanted a place to pitch and to attend college.
"I threw average my freshman year," Matlock said. "Then, my sophomore year, I decided to step up and get some stuff done. We ended up winning the World Series."
Enter Longview head coach Clint Culbertson, who was an assistant coach for the Mules' 2003 national title team. Culbertson described Matlock as "fearless" coming out of the bullpen. He said Matlock was willing to face anyone and didn't care how he recorded outs.
"When we had a lead late in the game," Culbertson said, "we knew the game was over. Matlock believed he was better than anybody he faced. If you have that kind of confidence, usually you're able to attack the strike zone a lot easier."
Matlock's 12 saves ranked him second nationally entering the World Series and he won MVP honors after earning two saves, striking out 10 batters in 9.1 innings.
Winning the national title meant more to Matlock than being named MVP.
"It would've been a lot worse," Matlock said. "The whole goal was winning the World Series. I didn't care about winning the MVP, as long as we won."
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