Matt Summers
| IP | 388 |
|---|---|
| ERA | 3.966 |
| WHIP | 1.332 |
| BB/9 | 3.224 |
| SO/9 | 6.518 |
- Full name Matthew Lawrence Summers
- Born 08/17/1989 in Cave Creek, AZ
- Profile Ht.: 6'1" / Wt.: 205 / Bats: L / Throws: R
- School UC Irvine
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Drafted in the 4th round (148th overall) by the Minnesota Twins in 2011 (signed for $171,900).
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Summers arrived at UC Irvine as a center fielder with a strong arm, throwing just 38 innings (and posting an 8.36 ERA) over his first two college seasons. He hit even more sparingly, though, and made the decision to focus on his pitching last summer in the Cape Cod League, where he ran his fastball up to 96-97 mph in a relief role. He has taken a dramatic step forward on the mound as a junior, taking over as Irvine's Friday starter and ranking second in the Big West in ERA and opponent average and third in strikeouts. Summers still looks like a position player on the mound. He pitches exclusively from the stretch and has an extremely short arm action that makes his stuff hard to pick up and leads scouts to project him as a reliever in pro ball. He holds the velocity on his 90-93 mph fastball and will occasionally run it up to 94-95. His second pitch is a power curveball that projects as a solid-average offering, and he dabbles with a changeup but throws it sparingly. Summers is an excellent athlete with a durable 6-foot-1, 205-pound frame. Scouts believe his fastball will play up in a relief role in pro ball, and he has shown excellent aptitude since switching to a full-time pitching role, which is also encouraging.
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Organization Prospect Rankings
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Like many of the Twins' pitching prospects, Summers was a college closer, helping UC Irvine get within an out of the 2010 College World Series. He moved to the rotation as a junior in 2011, returned to the bullpen after signing for $171,900 as a fourth-round pick that summer, then started again in his first full pro season. In the system, only 2012 draftee Mason Melotakis rivals Summers' unconventionally short arm action. He worked with a 92-95 mph fastball that touched 98 as a college closer, but he pitched with an average 90 mph fastball as a pro. It still gets outs because he has a knack for throwing strikes low and away to righthanders. He also throws a slider, curveball and changeup. His low-80s slider has the best chance to give him a plus secondary pitch, though his changeup has its moments as well. When Summers is on, he generates a lot of weak contact. He grinded his way to high Class A by the end of 2012 despite not having a consistent above-average offering. His arm action and high-effort delivery have most scouts convinced he'll wind up back in the bullpen, but he'll begin 2013 back in the Fort Myers rotation. -
Summers was a two-way prep standout in the Scottsdale, Ariz., area. He helped Cactus Shadows win the Arizona 4-A state championship as a sophomore in 2006, then starred at Chaparral. He wound up at UC Irvine and continued to play both ways as a freshman and sophomore, eventually emerging as more of a pitcher. His fastball reached 97 mph when he worked out of the bullpen in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2010. He became the Anteaters' ace in 2011, throwing a no-hitter against Long Beach State in May but losing twice to Virginia in super-regional action. After signing for a slot bonus of $171,900 as a fourth-rounder, Summers dominated the Appy League as a reliever. The Twins were just holding down his workload, though, and have incorporated a windup into his delivery with plans to start him in 2012. He has an unusually short arm action and may wind up back in the bullpen as a result. He lost some fastball velocity last summer, pitching at 90-92 mph with Elizabethton, but he was back around 94-96 in instructional league. His straight changeup emerged as a weapon in his debut, and he struck out 16 of the 25 lefthanders he faced without allowing a hit. He also throws an upper-80s cutter that gets in on the hands of lefties. His slurvy curveball has some power, reaching 77-78 mph at times. If the plans to start him stick, he'll head to low Class A to open his first full pro season.
