BOCA RATON – As nice as FAU’s outfield grass is, Owls left fielder Gary Mattis feels more comfortable a little closer to the plate.
“It felt good to be on the dirt,” the freshman said following Wednesday’s victory over Maine, a game in which he made his first collegiate start at second base.
Mattis came to FAU as a middle infielder but with second baseman Stephen Kerr returning for his senior season and Tyler Frank moving from behind the plate to his natural position at shortstop, FAU coach John McCormack moved Mattis, the Owls’ second baseman of the future, to left field in order to keep his bat in the lineup.
Learning to play the outfield proved adventurous at times, especially with the way the wind howled last weekend, but Mattis’ bat has been as good as anyone could expect. Entering the Owls’ weekend series against Toledo, he’s hitting .431 with three homers and 14 RBI. All three of those totals are second only to Frank among Owls.
“He just sees the ball and he hits the ball, and he’s got really good hands to the ball, and he doesn’t worry about anything that’s happened in the past,” McCormack said.
Mattis’ statistics received a huge boost from Tuesday’s 4-for-5 afternoon at Bethune-Cookman in which he belted two homers, including a grand slam, and drove in eight.
“It was like a dream,” Mattis said of the trip to Daytona. “It was amazing.”
With Kerr battling a sore oblique that’s caused him to miss the past four games, it’s possible Mattis will see some more action at second base.
Believing the injury would be short-lived, McCormack initially moved third baseman Austin Langham to second in order to allow Mattis to continue to gain more experience as an outfielder.
He does concede, though, that if Kerr looks like he’ll miss the entire Toledo series, Mattis will spend the weekend as an infielder.
“I would think, at least, let it ride for one more day,” McCormack said.
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