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Up Close: Matt McSwain
2/27/2007
Up Close: Matt McSwain By: Justin Easter Matt McSwain is a former Randleman High School and Elon University right-hander. Matt left Monday night for the Pittsburgh Pirates spring training in Bradenton, FL., but before he left he sat down with Impact's Justin Easter for an exclusive interview. Justin Easter: Matt thanks for taking time to sit down with us. So how are things going? Matt McSwain: Pretty good man, just getting ready to head out, saying bye to everybody, just working out for the last little bit you know. JE: So are you nervous for your 1st spring training? MM: Not really. I'm actually more looking forward to it than I am nervous. I'm ready to get down there. I've been out of baseball about 3 or 4 months now. I'm ready just to get back into things. JE: We'll every level you've ever played at you have been successful, how do you keep such a level head about yourself? MM: I've just got the mentality that God is going to take care of me. He's given me my talent and I just kind of go about it with that. Just use what he's given me and play how I play. JE: Let's talk about your injury. When you got hurt at Elon, you had earned the Friday night starter role and had a 5-0 record. How did that injury occur? MM: We were actually at East Tennessee State. It happened I think in the 5th inning. I was throwing well through 5 innings and with 1 strike on the batter with 2 outs I threw a curveball and heard it pop. It went numb from about my bicep down. After that I threw another pitch and ended up getting out of the inning. When I come in the dugout I told Coach that it was hurting. So they started warming up somebody and I tried throwing before the next inning and really couldn't even get it to home plate. So that's how it came about. When we got home that week, some doctor came in and looked at it and said it was just tendonitis. So we iced it all that week and I ended up throwing 6 innings against Furman that week with about a 10 to 15 mph difference in velocity. The more I threw the more the pain came in. So we got a MRI that revealed that it was torn and that I was going to have to have Tommy John Surgery. JE: How hard was it going through Tommy John Surgery? MM: It's brutal, it is brutal. It's not only the actual pain of the rehab, the rehab is tough. It's wanting to strengthen that thing back up that hasn't moved in a month. It's tough and the mental part is the hardest thing because you want to get on the field so bad. At times you feel like your arm is never going to be the same, you feel like you're done, like your career may be over. But you just have to keep going and keep going. As far as Tommy John itself and the rehab, it's definitely the hardest thing I've ever had to do but it's the best thing I've done. JE: What advice could you offer to someone who is facing Tommy John? MM: Really just do everything that you're told to do. Whatever is on your rehab program, do it to perfection. Don't slack off a bit, not even one day. Just know going in, ok this is going to be tough, it's going to be hard on me mentally; but just push on through. It turned out to be the fastest year of my life. JE: How did you feel that year sitting out and watching Elon win the SoCon and go to the NCAA Tournament knowing you should have been on the mound? MM: I was watching them play and watching the guys that I played with, watching their play pick up. I wanted to be on the mound, I knew I could be out there helping them do even better. But I wasn't at all envious of them. I was so happy and proud of them. Even though I didn't graduate there I feel like I was a part of that team. I was just really proud of them. JE: What goals do you have for yourself coming up this season? MM: Well I've talked to some people in our organization and they said it would probably be a good goal to come out of spring training in Hickory. That's understandable and I know in baseball you have to pay your dues. But I think with the talent I've seen down there and the talent I think I have and the blessing I feel I have I can see my self finishing at least in Double A, I really do. That's what I hope, that's what I'm striving for. I'm shooting to get to the Big Leagues, now whether that happens I don't know but that's what I'm striving for. JE: Well Matt, thank you so much for the time. I really wish you luck and I know you'll be fine MM: Thanks man, it was a pleasure, take care of yourself.
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