Tom Mastny
Encyclopedia
Thomas Raymond Mastny is a Major League Baseball
right-handed relief pitcher
who plays in the Florida Marlins
organization. He is pitching with Class AAA New Orleans Zephyrs. He stands 6 feet, 6 inches in height and weighs 220 pounds. Mastny is the only Indonesian-born player in Major League history, although he was raised in Zionsville
, Indiana
, where he played for Zionsville Community High School
. He made his major league debut with the Indians on July 25, .
at Furman University
, where he was primarily used as a starting pitcher
. In , he was named the Southern Conference
Pitcher of the Year, but was not widely regarded as a top-tier prospect. He was selected in the 11th round of the 2003 draft by the Toronto Blue Jays
, and began his professional career with the Auburn Doubledays
of the Single-A New York-Penn League.
In , he played a full season with the Single-A Charleston Alley Cats
, before being sent to the Cleveland Indians in the offseason to complete an earlier trade in which Toronto acquired infielder
John McDonald.
After beginning the season in the starting rotation of the Single-A Kinston Indians
, Mastny was converted into a relief role. Later that year, he was promoted to the Double-A Akron Aeros
, with whom he remained to begin the season, before being called up for a stint in the bullpen of the Triple-A
Buffalo Bisons
.
Although still mostly unheralded as a prospect, due partly to his age (then 25), Mastny's career quickly accelerated that summer as the unexpectedly non-contending Indians began shuffling a bullpen
that often struggled, particularly after the trade of closer
Bob Wickman
. The rookie pitcher—whose role with Akron and Buffalo was almost exclusively in middle relief, and who'd recorded only three saves in the minors—was given an opportunity to close essentially by default, earning his first with two scoreless innings against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on August 19. That day, manager Eric Wedge
announced that Mastny would be among those tried out in the role over the remainder of the season.
Mastny catapulted onto the national scene after earning a victory in Game 2 of the 2007 American League Championship Series
. He was brought in to face the heart of the Red Sox
lineup in the bottom of the tenth inning, in which he retired David Ortiz
, Manny Ramírez
, and Mike Lowell
in order. The Indians would go on to score seven times in the top of the 11th, handing the victory to Mastny.
After a spring training
roster battle with Jorge Julio
in , Mastny was slotted to begin the season with the Triple-A Bisons. He was recalled on April 15, 2008, when Joe Borowski went on the 15-day disabled list
. Mastny made his first career start on June 3, 2008, against the Texas Rangers
.
On December 7, 2008, the Indians sold Mastny's contract to the Yokohama BayStars of the Japanese Central League
.
s Paul Hagen
reported incorrectly on August 11, 2006, "it was discovered that the [Cleveland Indians] media guide lists Indiana-born reliever Tom Mastny as being from Indonesia". Hagen's quote was part of a brief that was syndicated on several Internet news sites and subsequently was repeated by other writers and bloggers. That same weekend, it was reported that members of the Society for American Baseball Research
had contacted Mastny's father to confirm that, although the family hails from Indiana, the pitcher was indeed born on the Indonesian island of Borneo.
That the relatively unknown player's biographical trivia
would be subject to scrutiny is in part due to historical implications, as Mastny is the first Indonesian-born individual to reach the major leagues, as reported by ESPN
columnist Keith Law
:
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
right-handed relief pitcher
Relief pitcher
A relief pitcher or reliever is a baseball or softball pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed due to injury, ineffectiveness, fatigue, ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as being substituted by a pinch hitter...
who plays in the Florida Marlins
Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...
organization. He is pitching with Class AAA New Orleans Zephyrs. He stands 6 feet, 6 inches in height and weighs 220 pounds. Mastny is the only Indonesian-born player in Major League history, although he was raised in Zionsville
Zionsville, Indiana
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 8,775 people, 3,063 households, and 2,407 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,512.9 people per square mile . There were 3,169 housing units at an average density of 546.4 per square mile...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, where he played for Zionsville Community High School
Zionsville Community High School
Zionsville Community High School is a 4-year high school located in Boone County, Zionsville, Indiana, United States. The high school's current enrollment is 1,990 students as of the 2009-2010 school year....
. He made his major league debut with the Indians on July 25, .
Career
Mastny, nicknamed "Mr. Nasty," played collegiate baseballBaseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
at Furman University
Furman University
Furman University is a selective, private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Furman is one of the oldest, and more selective private institutions in South Carolina...
, where he was primarily used as a starting pitcher
Starting pitcher
In baseball or softball, a starting pitcher is the pitcher who delivers the first pitch to the first batter of a game. A pitcher who enters the game after the first pitch of the game is a relief pitcher....
. In , he was named the Southern Conference
Southern Conference
The Southern Conference is a Division I college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision . Member institutions are located in the states of Alabama, Georgia, North...
Pitcher of the Year, but was not widely regarded as a top-tier prospect. He was selected in the 11th round of the 2003 draft by the Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
, and began his professional career with the Auburn Doubledays
Auburn Doubledays
The Auburn Doubledays are a minor league baseball team in Auburn, New York, USA, that is owned and operated by Auburn Community Baseball. They are a member of the Short-Season Class A New York-Penn League and have been a farm team of the Houston Astros , the Toronto Blue Jays , and Washington...
of the Single-A New York-Penn League.
In , he played a full season with the Single-A Charleston Alley Cats
West Virginia Power
This article is about the baseball team, for the electric utility serving southeast West Virginia from 1986-99, see Allegheny Energy.The West Virginia Power is a minor league baseball team of the South Atlantic League, and is the Class A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in...
, before being sent to the Cleveland Indians in the offseason to complete an earlier trade in which Toronto acquired infielder
Infielder
An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field.-Standard arrangement of positions:In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles...
John McDonald.
After beginning the season in the starting rotation of the Single-A Kinston Indians
Kinston Indians
The Kinston Indians were a minor league baseball team of the Carolina League , and the High-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians. They were located in Kinston, North Carolina, and were named for their parent club...
, Mastny was converted into a relief role. Later that year, he was promoted to the Double-A Akron Aeros
Akron Aeros
The Akron Aeros are a minor league baseball team based in Akron, Ohio, USA. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Indians.The Aeros play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 9,097 fans...
, with whom he remained to begin the season, before being called up for a stint in the bullpen of the Triple-A
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
Buffalo Bisons
Buffalo Bisons
The Buffalo Bisons are a minor league baseball team based in Buffalo, New York. They currently play in the International League and are the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets...
.
Although still mostly unheralded as a prospect, due partly to his age (then 25), Mastny's career quickly accelerated that summer as the unexpectedly non-contending Indians began shuffling a bullpen
Bullpen
In baseball, the bullpen is the area where relief pitchers warm-up before entering a game. Depending on the ballpark, it may be situated in foul territory along the baselines or just beyond the outfield fence. Also, a team's roster of relief pitchers is metonymically referred to as "the bullpen"...
that often struggled, particularly after the trade of closer
Closer (baseball)
In baseball, a closing pitcher, more frequently referred to as a closer , is a relief pitcher who specializes in closing out games, i.e., getting the final outs in a close game. Closers often appear when the score is close, and the role is often assigned to a team's best reliever. A small number of...
Bob Wickman
Bob Wickman
Robert Joe Wickman is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. Wickman played for the New York Yankees , Milwaukee Brewers , Cleveland Indians , Atlanta Braves , and Arizona Diamondbacks . He batted and threw right-handed...
. The rookie pitcher—whose role with Akron and Buffalo was almost exclusively in middle relief, and who'd recorded only three saves in the minors—was given an opportunity to close essentially by default, earning his first with two scoreless innings against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on August 19. That day, manager Eric Wedge
Eric Wedge
Eric Michael Wedge is a Major League Baseball manager and former catcher, and is the current manager of the Seattle Mariners. As a player, Wedge attended Northrop High School in Fort Wayne and played on the school's state champion baseball team in 1983...
announced that Mastny would be among those tried out in the role over the remainder of the season.
Mastny catapulted onto the national scene after earning a victory in Game 2 of the 2007 American League Championship Series
American League Championship Series
In Major League Baseball, the American League Championship Series , played in October, is a round in the postseason that determines the winner of the American League pennant...
. He was brought in to face the heart of the Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
lineup in the bottom of the tenth inning, in which he retired David Ortiz
David Ortiz
David Américo Ortiz Arias , known as David Ortiz, nicknamed "Big Papi", is a Dominican American professional baseball player who is currently a free agent. Previously, Ortiz played with the Minnesota Twins and Boston Red Sox...
, Manny Ramírez
Manny Ramírez
Manuel "Manny" Arístides Ramírez Onelcida is a retired Dominican-American professional baseball outfielder. He was recognized for great batting skill and power, a nine-time Silver Slugger and one of 25 players to hit 500 career home runs. Ramirez's 21 grand slams are third all-time, and his 28...
, and Mike Lowell
Mike Lowell
Michael Averett Lowell is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball third baseman. During a 13-year career, Lowell played for the New York Yankees , Florida Marlins , and the Boston Red Sox...
in order. The Indians would go on to score seven times in the top of the 11th, handing the victory to Mastny.
After a spring training
Spring training
In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives existing team players practice time prior to competitive play...
roster battle with Jorge Julio
Jorge Julio
Jorge Dandys Julio Tapia is a Major League Baseball relief pitcher who is currently pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. He previously played for the Baltimore Orioles from 2001–2005, New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks in 2006, and the Florida Marlins in 2007 before being traded...
in , Mastny was slotted to begin the season with the Triple-A Bisons. He was recalled on April 15, 2008, when Joe Borowski went on the 15-day disabled list
Disabled list
In Major League Baseball, the disabled list is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players.-General guidelines:...
. Mastny made his first career start on June 3, 2008, against the Texas Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
.
On December 7, 2008, the Indians sold Mastny's contract to the Yokohama BayStars of the Japanese Central League
Central League
The or is one the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consists of six teams from around the country,The Central League...
.
Birthplace confusion
Mastny's birthplace was briefly the source of some confusion after the Philadelphia Daily NewsPhiladelphia Daily News
The Philadelphia Daily News is a tabloid newspaper that serves Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The newspaper is owned by Philadelphia Media Holdings which also owns Philadelphia's other major newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Daily News began publishing on March 31, 1925, under...
s Paul Hagen
Paul Hagen
Paul Hagen was a Danish film actor. He appeared in over 100 films between 1952 and 1999.He was born in Denmark and died in Langø, Denmark.-Filmography:*Far betaler - 1946*Avismanden - 1952...
reported incorrectly on August 11, 2006, "it was discovered that the [Cleveland Indians] media guide lists Indiana-born reliever Tom Mastny as being from Indonesia". Hagen's quote was part of a brief that was syndicated on several Internet news sites and subsequently was repeated by other writers and bloggers. That same weekend, it was reported that members of the Society for American Baseball Research
Society for American Baseball Research
The Society for American Baseball Research was established in Cooperstown, New York, in August 1971 by Bob Davids of Washington, D.C. The Society's mission is to foster the research and dissemination of the history and record of baseball, while generating interest in the game...
had contacted Mastny's father to confirm that, although the family hails from Indiana, the pitcher was indeed born on the Indonesian island of Borneo.
That the relatively unknown player's biographical trivia
Trivia
The trivia are the three lower Artes Liberales, i.e. grammar, rhetoric and logic. These were the topics of basic education, foundational to the quadrivia of higher education, and hence the material of basic education, of interest only to undergraduates...
would be subject to scrutiny is in part due to historical implications, as Mastny is the first Indonesian-born individual to reach the major leagues, as reported by ESPN
ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN and a division of ESPN Inc. Since launching in 1995 as ESPNet.SportsZone.com, the website has developed numerous sections including: Page 2, SportsNation, ESPN 3.com, ESPN Motion, My ESPN, ESPN Sports Travel, ESPN Video Games, ESPN Insider, ESPN.com's...
columnist Keith Law
Keith Law
Keith Law is a senior baseball writer for ESPN.com and ESPN Scouts, Inc. He was formerly a writer for Baseball Prospectus and worked in the front office for the Toronto Blue Jays. He is a member of the Baseball Writers Association of America....
:
Cleveland farmhand Tom Mastny was born in Indonesia, although it was to AmericanUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
parents who wanted to travel the world. The 6-5 [sic] Mastny has a fringe-average fastballFastballThe fastball is the most common type of pitch in baseball. Some "power pitchers," such as Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, have thrown it at speeds of 95–106 mph and up to 108.1 mph , relying purely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit...
but outstanding control, and with a good season so far between Double-A Akron and Triple-A Buffalo, he seems likely to become the first big leaguer born in Indonesia, which would become the 52nd country to produce a major league player.