'He won this one': Younger Maton bests big brother
Edwin Perez
@morales18edwinHOUSTON -- There's no better way to finish off the regular season than with a sibling rivalry. That was the case on Wednesday afternoon, when Astros reliever Phil Maton faced Phillies infielder Nick Maton in the eighth inning of Houston's 3-2 victory at Minute Maid Park.
¡°It was pretty cool,¡± Astros manager Dusty Baker said. ¡°I was thinking about my brother and I playing strikeout in the garage, so it was a pretty special moment for two brothers.¡±
The game may have not held much significance as both teams had previously secured their playoff spot, but for the Matons, it made for a special moment. Phil entered the game to begin the eighth, and in the on-deck circle for the Phillies was his brother, Nick.
The brothers had previously matched up only in the batting cages, due to Phil (29) being four years older than Nick (25). That meant Wednesday was the first time that they squared off in a game.
It was a moment that both teams wanted to make happen all series, so when the opportunity presented itself Wednesday, they made sure the matchup took place.
¡°It was one of the bigger cat-and-mouse games I¡¯ve had this year, because it¡¯s been hyped,¡± Phil said. ¡°He¡¯s aware of what he is good at hitting and not. He put up a good fight and I think I surprised him with a few pitches.¡±
The duel went for six pitches, including a called strike. But in the end, Nick took home the bragging rights when he lined a 2-2 pitch into right field for a single off a 91 mph fastball.
¡°It was super exciting,¡± Nick said. ¡°I kind of just wanted to treat it as another at-bat. Once I got up there, it definitely wasn't like that. It felt like we were in the backyard. Just seeing him out there was pretty fun.¡±
Both teams were on the top step of their dugouts watching the showdown. The hit led to disappointment on the Astros' side, while players in the Phillies' dugout went crazy and asked for the ball to make sure the younger Maton could hold on to the memento.
¡°I was trying my best to not listen to the chirping going on both sides,¡± Phil said. ¡°It was hard to keep it together because it was a really cool experience. He won this one.¡±
Nick added: ¡°It made it more exciting with everyone going crazy here. I didn't think the fans would be like that. They went nuts.¡±