It's been close to two decades since an MLB pitcher threw 150 pitches in one game.
So the baseball world was left stunned when a college player surpassed the 150-pitch mark in an unbelievable NCAA Tournament showing on Sunday night.
With Stanford needing a win over Texas to force a decisive Game 3 in the super regionals, Cardinal southpaw Quinn Mathews went the distance to help secure a season-saving 8-3 victory. The 6-foot-5 senior threw a staggering 156 pitches over nine innings, allowing three runs on eight hits and one walk while striking out a career-high 16 batters.
Despite Stanford scoring three runs in the top of the ninth to extend its lead to five, Mathews still took the mound to finish off the complete game.
The last time an MLB pitcher threw at least 150 pitches in a game? Livan Hernandez in 2006 with exactly 150 pitches over nine innings.
MLB
Mathews was coming off a four-day stretch in the regionals where he threw a combined 180 pitches. He tossed 114 pitches against San Jose State on June 2 and 66 versus Texas A&M on June 5. Six days later, he threw 156.
For the season, Mathews is 10-4 with a 3.60 ERA, boasting 152 strikeouts over 120 innings. He was actually picked in the 19th round of the 2022 draft by the Tampa Bay Rays but opted to return to school.
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The 22-year-old is projected to go much earlier in this year's draft. MLB.com has Mathews rated as the No. 119 overall prospect in the 2023 class.
