Matthew Reese Carson (born July 1, 1981) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

. He is tall and weighs . He has played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

and

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

. Prior to playing professionally, he attended

Yucaipa High School Yucaipa High School is a public high school in Yucaipa, California, United States that serves the cities of Yucaipa and Calimesa and the community of Oak Glen, 65 miles east of Los Angeles. History The original Yucaipa High School campus is no ...

and then

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

(BYU).

Collegiate career

At BYU, he majored in mechanical engineering and was named to the Mountain West Conference All-Tournament Team in his freshman season, which was also the event's inaugural year. In 2000, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the Hyannis Mets of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousan ...

, and returned to the league in 2001 to play for the

Brewster Whitecaps The Brewster Whitecaps are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Brewster, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's East Division. The Whitecaps play their home games at Stony Brook ...

Professional career

New York Yankees

Carson was drafted by the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

in the fifth round of the

2002 Major League Baseball Draft The 2002 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft, was held on June 4 and 5. It is featured in Michael Lewis' 2003 book '' Moneyball''. First round selections Supplemental first round compensation selections * ...

. He began his minor league career in with the Staten Island Yankees, hitting .203 in 48 games. He spent the next season with the Battle Creek Yankees, hitting .259 with 11 home runs and 100 strikeouts in 119 games. In 2004, he played for the Battle Creek Yankees and

Tampa Yankees Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

, hitting a combined .271 with 15 home runs and 111 strikeouts in 132. Carson split the 2005 season between Tampa and the

Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the Doub ...

, batting .238 with nine home runs in 112 games. In 2006, he played for those two teams again, hitting .248 with ten home runs in 69 games. He spent all of 2007 with Trenton, hitting .248 with 16 home runs, and in 2008 he played for Trenton and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, hitting .285 with 15 home runs in 111 games.

Oakland Athletics

Carson signed as a minor league free agent with the

on December 1, 2008, and played with the

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics for 15 yea ...

. He had a career year, hitting .264 with 25 home runs and 77 RBI, and was subsequently called up to the major leagues. Carson made his major league debut on September 18, 2009, against the

. In his first game, he struck out twice in three at-bats. His first hit was a single to right field off of

Tomo Ohka (born March 18, 1976) is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Boston Red Sox (–), Montreal Expos / Washington Nationals (2001–), Milwaukee Brewers (2005–), Toronto Blue Jays (), Cleveland Indians ...

of the Indians the following day. Three days later, he hit his first major league home run in the 9th inning off of the Texas Rangers' Eddie Guardado. Carson was outrighted to the minors after the 2010 season. In 46 games over two seasons, he hit .200 with five homers and 14 RBI.

Tampa Bay Rays

He was purchased by the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. Since its inception ...

from the Athletics on August 1, 2011, and briefly played with the

Durham Bulls The Durham Bulls are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. They are located in Durham, North Carolina, and play their home games at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, which opened in ...

, where he hit .250 in 22 games. After the 2011 season, he elected free agency.

Minnesota Twins

He signed a minor league contract with the

on November 17, 2011. He spent most of the season in AAA with the

Rochester Red Wings The Rochester Red Wings are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They are located in Rochester, New York, and play their home games at Innovative Field ...

, hitting .282 with 14 homers and 53 RBI. He also appeared in 26 games for the Twins, hitting .227.

Cleveland Indians

After signing with the

on November 19, 2012, Carson went on to appear in 20 games for Cleveland, collecting seven hits, including one homer, in 11 at-bats. On September 19, he hit a walk-off single against the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...

. After the season, Carson was non-tendered by the Indians, making him a free agent. He was re-signed to a minor league deal on December 13, 2013.

Los Angeles Dodgers

In January 2015, he signed a minor league contract with the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

, that included an invitation to major league spring training. He was assigned to the AAA Oklahoma City Dodgers.

Oakland Athletics (second stint)

The Dodgers traded him back to the Athletics on May 8, 2015. Carson was assigned to the Triple-A

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

. He was released on June 20.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carson, Matt Living people 1981 births Baseball players from Newport Beach, California Oakland Athletics players Minnesota Twins players Cleveland Indians players BYU Cougars baseball players Águilas Cibaeñas players American expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Staten Island Yankees players Battle Creek Yankees players Tampa Yankees players Trenton Thunder players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players Sacramento River Cats players Durham Bulls players Estrellas Orientales players Rochester Red Wings players Columbus Clippers players Oklahoma City Dodgers players Nashville Sounds players Brewster Whitecaps players Hyannis Harbor Hawks players People from Yucaipa, California