NEWS
Jason is regaining his form with the Sky Sox after suffereing a rotator cuff injury during spring training.
Picture courtesy of Cory Hughes.
Email
Send Matt an email at mhirsh32@hotmail.com
Send Jason an email at hirsh.journal@hotmail.com
Stats
Matt's stats
Jason's stats
July 21, 2008
Jason struggled in his latest start against the Portland Beavers Friday night in Portland, Oregon. He had a rough first inning as he gave up 4 runs and walked 3. He finished the night giving up 5 runs on 7 hits while walking 5 in 4 innings of work. He took a no-decision as the Sky Sox came back to tie the game, but lost 6-5. His next start will come Wednesday, July 23rd, against the New Orleans Zephyrs at home in Colorado Springs.
July 14, 2008
It was a successful weekend for the Hirsh brothers and Jason and Matt both performed well in their games. Jason threw 6 solid innings Saturday night against the Fresno Grizzlies giving up 3 runs on 7 hits while striking out 3 and walking 3 (1 intentional). He earned a no-decision but the Sky Sox won 6-5 in 11 innings. The Sky Sox and the rest of the Minor Leagues are on their respective All-Star breaks and will resume play on Friday, July 18, which is Jason's next start.
Matt had a great day at the plate yesterday for the Oneders going 2 for 2 with a walk and RBI. He tripled in a run in the 2nd inning and singled in the 5th, and walked in the 7th. He also pitched a perfect 9th inning.
July 9, 2008
Jason had another solid outing Monday night against the Sacramento River Cats. He threw 5 innings giving up 1 run on 2 hits while striking out 4 and walking a career-high 7 batters. Although he was wild, Jason was able to pitch his way out of trouble and only give up 1 run. He also earned his second win of the season to improve to 2-2. His next start will be Saturday at home against the Fresno Grizzlies.
Matt had Sunday off in observence of the 4th of July. He will return to action Sunday at 2pm at Granada Hills High School.
July 3, 2008
Jason made his best start of the year last night against the Tacoma Rainiers. He threw 6 strong innings giving up 1 run on 5 hits while striking out 2 and walking only 1. He earned his first win of the season and improves to 1-2 with a 4.93 ERA in 6 starts for the Sky Sox. He will make his next start Sunday, July 6th at home against the Las Vegas 51s. The afternoon game begins at 1:05pm CST.
June 30, 2008
To view Matt's current hitting stats with the Oneders click on the "Matt's Stats" link above. It has been updated.
The Oneders dropped their double header today at Oak Park High School to the Conejo Red Sox. Matt went 1 for 3 in the first game with a single and a walk. With a 2 run lead going into the bottom of the 9th inning the Red Sox came back to score 3 runs to win the game. In the second game Matt went and 1 for 4 in with a home run and 1 RBI. He also stole his first base of the season. The second game turned out to be a slugfest as the Red Sox crushed the Oneders by scoring 15+ runs. The Oneders are off next week for the 4th of July and will continue on July 13th.
Jason will make his next start for the Sky Sox Tuesday against the Tacoma Rainiers in Tacoma, Washington.
June 27, 2008
Jason was scratched from his start last night in favor of Kip Wells, who is on rehab assignment from his blood clot in his hand. Wells threw 5 innings and Jason came in to relieve Wells in the 6th. He threw 4.1 innings giving up 3 runs on 5 hits while walking 4 and striking out 5. He received the loss for the Sky Sox as they lost to the Portland Beavers 5-4 in 10 innings.
June 25, 2008
Jason had his worst start of the season Friday night against the Salt Lake Bees. Lasting 6 innings, he gave up 6 runs on 9 hits while walking 2 and striking out 1. He is currently 0-1 with a 5.55 ERA in 5 starts for the Sky Sox this season. He will make his next start tomorrow night at Portland.
Matt had a bye week as the PCBL held their All-Star game. He will have a double-header on Sunday at Oak Park High School starting at 10am.
June 17, 2008
Jason made his first Father's Day start on Sunday against the Tucson Sidewinders. He went 6 innings giving up 4 runs on 6 hits while walking 3 and striking out 2. His efforts earned him a no-decision as the Sky Sox scored 6 runs between the 8th and 9th innings to force extra innings. They scored 3 runs in the top of the 11th and won the game by a score of 12-9. His next start will be Friday, the 20th, against the Salt Lake Bees in Salt Lake City.
Matt attended the MLB Scouting Bureau tryout held this past Saturday at the MLB Urban Youth Academy located at Compton College. He went out as an outfielder and posted some pretty impressive numbers. He ran a 6.7 second 60-yard dash (6.9 is the MLB average) and his arm was rated a 5 on the scouting scale, which ranges from 1 to 5. He was chosen to stay around and play in the game and went 0 for 3 with a strikeout. Early Sunday morning he played with the Oneders at the College of the Canyons against the number one team in the league; the Barracudas. With nobody out in the bottom of the 9th inning and his team down by 4, Matt belted a grand slam to left field to tie the game. Time eventually ran out and the Oneders tied the Barracudas by a score of 9-9. He finished the day 2 for 4 with 4 RBI. Next week is the PCBL All-Star break, so Matt will not have a game.
June 13, 2008
Jason was activated from the 60-day disabled list today and was optioned down to Triple-A Colorado Springs. He reamains on the 40-Man Roster but will remain in Triple-A until he is recalled by the big league team.
Matt will be attending a MLB Scouting Bureau tryout tomorrow morning at the MLB Urban Youth Academy located at Compton College. The tryout begins at 9am and will run most of the day.
June 8, 2008
Jason made his second rehab start for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox Thursday night in Colorado Springs. He went 4.1 innings giving up 4 runs on 5 hits, including 2 home runs, while walking 1 and striking out 6. He threw 79 pitches, 49 for strikes. He'll make his next start for the Sky Sox Tuesday, June 10th, against the Fresno Grizzlies in Fresno, CA.
Matt played his 3rd game for the Oneders today at Pierce College against the Astros. He played first base and went 2 for 5 at the plate with 1 RBI. Next week he will be playing against the Barricudas at College of the Canyons.
June 4, 2008
There is a new article about Jason on the Rockies website. You can view it HERE.
June 2, 2008
In his first start of the year against the Salt Lake City Bees, Jason threw 3 innings giving up 1 run on 3 hits while walking 5 and striking out 1. He threw 64 pitches in his debut and will make his second start of the year against the Bees again on Thursday night at home in Colorado Springs.
The Onders of the Pacific Coast Baseball League took on the Platoon yesterday morning at Pierce College. Matt went 0 for 2 at the plate with a fielder's choice and a strikeout in their 10-3 loss. They will play again next Sunday.
May 30, 2008
Jason will be making his first appearance of the season tonight for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox of the Pacific Coast League. He will take on the Salt Lake City Bees (LA Angels Triple-A) in Salt Lake City. This will be his first of at least three rehab starts for the Triple-A squad before rejoining the struggling big league club. The Rockies (20-34) are currently 10 games behind the D-Backs and sit at the bottom of the NL West Division. Plagued by injuries this season, the Rockies have 5 pitchers and 4 starting position players on the disabled list, forcing them to use their resources in Triple-A to help the club.
Matt has decided to make the switch from pitching to being an outfielder/first baseman. His decision came recently and he will continue to workout and play the outfield for the Oneders. Matt has had no collegiate or professional hitting experience. He did however play the outfield in high school and hit .363 his senior year with 8 HR and 19 RBI with 8 stolen bases as well. His only at-bat in college came against the Whittier Poets and got a base hit.
May 21, 2008
Jason will be making two starts in extended spring training in Tucson. His first start will be today (2 innings) and his second again in 5 days, where he'll pitch 3 innings. After his two starts down in Tucson he'll head off on his rehab assignment to Colorado Springs (Triple-A).
Matt has joined a Sunday league team called the Oneders (pronounced "wonders"). He played this past Sunday at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, CA. He is still coming back from an arm injury so he played right field and hit. He went 2 for 3 at the dish with 2 RBIs, a walk, and a run scored. His next game will be in two weeks.
May 12, 2008
Jason travelled with the team to Arizona to continue his rehabilitation. He will throw live batting practice today at Chase Field then head down to Tucson for a week or two to throw to batters in extended spring training, before heading out to Colorado Springs for his rehab starts.
April 29, 2008
Jason traveled back to Colorado to continue with his rehab program. He will throw a 15-20 pitch bullpen today and if it goes well he will be closer to getting back to the Rockies rotation. His estimated date of arrival back in the rotation is sometime in June. He will make 4 or 5 rehab starts for Colorado Springs (AAA) before heading back to the Rockies.
Matt is still searching for an independent team. He went to a tryout for the Orange County Flyers of the Golden Baseball League on April 19th, but did not make the team.
March 29, 2008
Matt was released yesterday by the Colorado Rockies. In their attempts to make their final rosters for this season, Matt did not figure into their equation and was sent home. He will look for another Independent team to play for this year. Last year he spent parts of the season with the York Revolution of the Atlantic League and the Sussex Skyhawks of the Can-Am League.
Back in Tucson, Jason is still rehabbing his shoulder. He is expected to be in there for at least 3 or 4 weeks but could be there longer. The Rockies start their season in St. Louis before heading back to Coors Field for their openening series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
March 25, 2008
Matt threw 1 inning yesterday in the Double-A game against the Diamondbacks. He had a rough day giving up 4 runs on 5 hits. Rosters are being finalized this week and there are still cuts to be made.
March 21, 2008
Matt threw 2 innings in an intersquad game today. He gave up 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 1 and allowing 0 runs. He is scheduled to throw again Monday or Tuesday. Meanwhile, the first round of cuts were made in minor league camp Thursday morning and Matt has made the cut. He is still in the Tulsa (Double-A) workgroup and is fighting for a spot in the bullpen. Jason threw off the mound today for the first time since March 1st with no pain and is scheduled to start the year on the 15-day disabled list. He will spend some time in extended spring training to rehab his shoulder before he returns to the team.
March 15, 2008
There is a new blog posted in the BLOG section. Click HERE to read it.
There is also a new article on Jason from the Rocky Mountain News. It was posted February 19th. Click HERE to read it.
March 12, 2008
Jason underwent an MRI on his right shoulder Monday afternoon, which turned out negative. He is sidelined with a strained subscapularis muscle and could possibly start the year on the disabled list. He is undergoing a treatment program to help him recover. Over in minor league camp, Matt threw a live batting practice session on Tuesday afternoon and will throw 1 inning for the Double-A team in tomorrow's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
March 6, 2008
Spring training is almost in full swing in Tucson. Rockies position players report Saturday and the first full squad workout will be Sunday. Pitchers reported to camp last Saturday and have been working out for the past week throwing bullpens and conditioning. Spring training games begin on March 13 for the Rockies. In Major League camp, Jason threw 2 scoreless innings in his spring training debut against the Milwaukee Brewers but missed his last start due to shoulder soreness.
January 22, 2008
The Hirsh brothers made a trip to the Children's Hospital of Los Angeles today. They visited patients in the physical therapy/occupational therapy ward and took pictures and signed autographs with the kids and their parents. This was Jason's second appearance at the Children's Hospital. Last season Jason and Dinger, the Rockies mascot, made an apperance at the Children's Hospital at St. Joseph's Hospital. Click HERE to read the article.
Matt will be reporting to spring training with the Rockies on February 29th in Tucson, Arizona. Pitchers and catchers report February 29th and position players report a week later on March 7th.
January 8, 2008
Jason and Matt started their Jaeger Sports Pro Camp yesterday, which will run until they leave for spring training. The camp entails a vigorous stretching and yoga program, which lasts about 3 hours, followed by long toss out on the field.
More exciting news for Matt as he has received an invitation to spring training by the Colorado Rockies. He will leave sometime during the first week in March and will compete for a spot on a full season roster. Jason reports for spring training on February 15th.
December 17, 2007
New updates have been made to the Training section and a new link has been added to the Links section. Be sure to check them out! Also, the Minors section has been changed to the Blog section.
November 9, 2007
Today Matt was put on waivers by the Sussex Skyhakws, which means that he is now a free agent and may begin talking with any teams that are willing to sign him. He will not return to Sussex next year to play in the Can-Am League.
Other News
Matt has finished up his Bachelor's Degree at California Lutheran University. He majored in Multimedia with an emphasis in graphic and web design. He played three years of baseball at Cal Lutheran before departing for the Houston Astros where he was drafted in the 30th round of the First-Year Players Draft held on June 6th and 7th of 2005. He played Rookie ball for the Greeneville Astros in Greeneville, Tennessee. After being released from the Astros in May of 2006, Matt later signed with the Cardinals in August.