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Seventh-round pick seeks some confidence at plate

Nick Maton’s eyes got big Thursday night when he sent a line drive down the left-field line. It was exactly the kind of hit he needed.

It had been 10 days since the last time he had a hit fall for the Wil­liamsport Crosscut­ters, but this was going to be the one to break his streak. Then State Col­lege’s Bryce Denton dove and the baseball disappeared into the left fielder’s glove.

Maton could only walk back to the dugout with frustration setting in. As a player who hit over .400 during the college season this spring, this isn’t how he envisioned his pro career starting. But there was a reason he walked away from Bowman Field on Thursday feeling hope.

He collected two hits that night and hit the ball hard in all four of his at-bats. The .136 batting average next to his name entering Friday’s series opener against Mahoning Valley wasn’t where the Phillies’ seventh-round draft pick would like it to be, but he carried hope into the three-game set because of Thursday night.

“I hit that one down the line and I was pumped. I’m thinking ‘there it is, there it is.’ Then he caught it,” Maton said with a chuckle after batting practice Friday. “Getting those hits were a good thing. But not only getting hits, but barreling up two more balls made me feel better about myself going up to the plate.”

Maton has top-of-the-order potential. He hit .408 with a .507 on-base percentage for Lincoln Land Community College. He stole 33 bases for the Loggers and was thrown out only twice in 49 games. And that’s primarily where he’s been since joining the Williamsport Crosscutters. He’s hit leadoff five times and second once.

But his breakthrough Thursday night came after manager Pat Borders put him in the ninth spot in the lineup. For Maton, that was the catalyst to getting back on track with his bat.

“It let me see some more fastballs and it definitely helped out,” Maton said. “I saw some more pitches and got deeper in counts. Barreling up four balls and understanding that I can do that and I can hit at this level, that was a big thing.”

“I thought Maton had great at-bats the whole game,” Borders said Thurs­day night. “That was super to see.”

Super enough that Maton was put back at the top of the lineup for last night’s game. Maton went through two years of college to prepare himself for this moment. It’s a moment he feels like he’s finally ready for.

He was drafted in the 40th, and final, round two years ago out of high school by the Oakland Athletics. But after talking with his family and coaches, he decided his best bet was to spend some time in college to grow both physically and mentally.

In June, he was walking around San Diego with his mother Ellen and brother Phil, a relief pitcher with the San Diego Padres, when he received the call he was drafted in the seventh round by the Phillies. He decided now was the right time to begin his professional career, and he made an impact his first night with the Crosscutters. He made an incredible diving catch in the hole at shortstop in the bottom of the ninth inning to preserve a Williamsport win over Auburn.

But his work with the bat just hadn’t quite been there. He had a hit in his first game — a double — along with a walk to go with that diving grab to end the game. But he went 0 for his next 17, including Denton’s diving grab Thursday before singling in the fifth inning. That one game, though, was all Maton needed to get going.

“Playing at these fields and playing in these complexes, it’s a completely different life than what playing JUCO ball was,” Maton said. “JUCO was playing ball on high school fields and playing with no fans. Here, there’s never really a down day. It’s so much fun.”

Being around his brother Phil, who made his Major League debut earlier this season, has shown Maton there is something to play for, and the big leagues are not just a pipe dream. Phil has posted a 1.74 ERA in 10 1/3 innings pitched with the Padres. He’s posted 11 scoreless outings in 12 appearances since joining the Padres.

“It’s crazy. You can’t describe it,” Maton said. “We went there and watched him play. He came out there and hearing all the fans cheer for him and seeing all the fans cheer for him, it’s crazy. It doesn’t seem like it’s the same guy we have dinner with every night.”

But now Maton has something to strive for. He can see the end game in playing minor league baseball, even at a rookie level like in the New York-Penn League. His brother told him to hunt fastballs in his at-bats and grind through the season and everything else would take care of itself.

“Seeing him going up and actually obtaining the goal, it shows you can actually get there,” Maton said. “Seeing him get there shows you can actually do it and it’s not just a dream.”

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