Baseball Somerset Patriots Sign LHP Matt Bywater by Somerset Patriots February 9, 2016 Bridgewater, NJ – The Somerset Patriots have announced the signing of left-handed pitcher Matt Bywater. He enters his first season both with the Somerset Patriots and in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. “I’m extremely excited to get to Somerset and start playing again,” Bywater said. “Hopefully we will be able to repeat as champions this year.” The southpaw began last year with the Southern Illinois Miners of the Frontier League, posting an 8-4 record with a 2.36 ERA (fifth best in the league), three complete games and one shutout over 16 starts. He also finished second in the league in strikeouts (123) against just 32 walks over 107 innings pitched. Bywater was signed at the end of the 2015 season by the Atlanta Braves organization and placed in High-A Carolina. There, he earned two wins over five starts with 27 strikeouts in 24.2 innings of work. The former Thousand Oaks, California native pitched with the Miners in 2014 as well, posting a near-identical line to his 2015 production: 8-4 with a 2.37 ERA and 114 strikeouts over a league-high 129.1 innings pitched. His ERA and strikeout totals each ranked third in the league, respectively. “We are very excited to have Matt join our pitching staff. He is a young lefty with a great arm and a good idea of how to pitch,” Somerset Patriots manager Brett Jodie said. “Matt has pitched well at every level in which he has played. He is a strike-thrower with high strikeout ability. We look forward to having him suit up with the Patriots this season.” Bywater spent the first three years of his professional baseball career with the Baltimore Orioles after he was selected in the seventh round of the 2010 draft. The Pepperdine University alum reached as high as Double-A Bowie in the Orioles organization in 2012. The 26-year old owns a 23-20 record with a 3.07 ERA, 420 strikeouts and four complete games over 93 appearances (68 starts) in his five-year minor league career. The Somerset Patriots won their Atlantic League leading sixth championship during the 2015 season. The schedule for 2016 has been released and can be viewed at www.somersetpatriots.com. For more information about the 2016 season, stop by TD Bank Ballpark, call (908) 252-0700, or visit www.somersetpatriots.com. Post Views: 1,472 The following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts Somerset Patriots Latest posts by Somerset Patriots (see all) Somerset Patriots Announce Added Programming On Radio Partner 1450 WCTC-AM - May 7, 2020 Somerset Patriots Bring Back All-Star RHP David Kubiak - April 7, 2020 Somerset Patriots Land Eight-Year Major Leaguer Vance Worley - March 27, 2020 Somerset Patriots Acquire Major League LHP Pat Dean - March 10, 2020 Related Topics2016 Roster2016 SeasonAtlantic LeagueMatt BywaterSomerset PatriotsSouthern Illinois MinersTD Bank BallparkTransactions Click to comment You must be logged in to post a comment Login Leave a Reply Cancel replyYou must be logged in to post a comment. Newsletter Subscription Can't Miss Posts! Women in Sports: NHL Network Host, Jackie Redmond by Nicholas Durst | posted on March 4, 2019 From Paramus High School to CBS Sports, Spero Dedes is making waves in sports broadcasting by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on October 27, 2020 Lochte, Dressel and Ledecky all Chasing Gold at 2021 Tokyo Olympics by Anthony Paradiso | posted on April 18, 2021 You Know I’m Right, Episode 109: The Athletic’s Marc Carig (Audio/Video) by Nicholas Durst | posted on April 19, 2021 Women in Sports: Podcast Host, New York Riptide Sideline Reporter, Dani Wexelman by Luke Porco | posted on March 3, 2020 More in Baseball You Know I’m Right, Episode 112: New York Jets’ Insider Brian Costello (Audio/Video) On the 112th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 109: The Athletic’s Marc Carig (Audio/Video) On the 109th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 108: WFAN’s Sweeny Murti (Audio/Video) On the 108th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 107: New York Post’s Columnist Mike Vaccaro (Audio/Video) On the 107th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... 2016 New York Yankees Preview: Starting Pitching Andrew Miller, Brian McCann among those honored at 36th Annual Thurman Munson Dinner