Baseball Player of the Year revealed
By developing another pitch to go with his fastball, Matthys emerges as dominant pitcher for Class 3A state runner-up Hanover Central
The development of Bret Matthys’ curveball propelled him to another level. After a promising sophomore season and the cancellation of last season due to the coronavirus pandemic, the senior left-hander spearheaded Hanover Central to the Class 3A state championship game in June. Matthys, the 2021 Post-Tribune Baseball Player of the Year, went 9-2 with a 1.07 ERA. He had 101 strikeouts and 17 walks in 72 innings.
The development of Bret Matthys’ curveball propelled him to another level.
After a promising sophomore season and the cancellation of last season due to the coronavirus pandemic, the senior left-hander spearheaded Hanover Central to the Class 3A state championship game in June.
Matt hys, the 2021 Post-Tribune Baseball Player of the Year, went 9-2 with a 1.07 ERA. He had 101 strikeouts and 17 walks in 72 innings.
Such a performance didn’t exactly surprise Hanover Central coach Ryan Bridges.
“He was unbelievable,” Bridges said. “I knew what we were going to get from him on the mound, but he even exceeded that.”
That curveball was key. Matthys always has thrown one. It was decent but not the sharpest.
The Purdue Northwest recruit had relied primarily on his fastball and change-up.
But Matthys and Bridges went to work last summer. Matthys continued to work through the winter, varying his grips and trying to get a feel for the pitch.
He briefly experimented with a slider.
At the beginning of this season, his curveball still was a work in progress.
But something clicked toward the middle of the season.
“I was working in the bullpen one day, and I got the release point down,” Matthys said. “Having three pitches is huge at the high school level.”
Bridges was confident Matthys would figure it out.
“He’s a student of the game,” Bridges said. “The
came along with it and got better as the year went on. … The breaking ball against lefties gave him a different element and just made him a completely different pitcher.
“If you can locate and throw three pitches for strikes, it doesn’t matter how hard you throw. The curveball turned out to be spectacular for him. It gave hitters something else to look at, and it was a big step for him.”
Matthys, who hopes to add effective fourth and fifth pitches to his repertoire in college, said ultimately he was “pleased with what my curveball looked like, especially in the semistate game.” In Hanover Central’s 7-0 win against Norwell at LaPorte, he tossed a seven-hitter with 13 strikeouts and no walks.
Matthys followed up with an excellent outing in the state championship game, allowing five hits with 10 strikeouts and four walks, including two intentional, in a 2-0 loss to Southridge at Victory Field in Indianapolis.
Matthys i mpressed senior catcher Stanley Galbreath throughout the season.
“I t ’s a l wa y s f u n ,” Galbreath said after the final. “The connection is there. He’s our guy. He’s been great all year.
“It ’s how he mixes off-speed. He doesn’t have a fastball that he’s going to blow by you. He flips in curveballs, uses his change-up a ton, and that just makes his fastball look that much faster.”
Senior center fielder Jared Comia, an Illinois recruit, also appreciated the season Matthys put together.
“Playing behind him is the best,” Comia said after the final. “He just gets outs.”
Matthys, also a first baseman, hit .494 with six homers, 42 RBIs, 14 doubles and six triples — pacing Hanover Central in each category.
“Toward the end of the year, I was looking at my stats and said, ‘This can’t be real,’ ” Matthys said. “I expected the pitching part, but I was surprised with the hitting part.”
Indeed, if the bar was high for Matthys on the mound, he and Bridges agreed his production with the bat was a revelation.
“He definitely exceeded expectations,” Bridges said. “He was able to drive the ball, get a lot of extra-base hits, take the ball the opposite way, and he didn’t strike out much.
“Overall, he was just our team leader statistically, and him and Jared shared the role of captains.”
Matthys, one of eight seniors, t hanked his teammates, coaches and extended family for their support and contributions to his success.
“It was a team effort,” Matthys said. “Everything I worked toward, it showed this season and paid off. Hopefully it will translate to the college level and just the whole experience.”
Matthys, who took up golf last year as a means of relaxation, plans to major in construction engineering and technology management, with a possible minor in business management. He praised the culture that’s been created at Hanover Central and anticipated being around to help the team next season.
“I’ve been reflecting a lot on what this season was and how we got to that point,” Matthys said. “It ’s cool to see how team camaraderie built throughout the whole year. As the year went on, you could tell it was a very good group of guys. Everyone bought in and had fun. We all had the same goal — to end the season at Victory Field.”