Matt Purke

Matt Purke
Washington Nationals – No. 50
Pitcher
Born: (1990-07-17) July 17, 1990 Spring, Texas
Bats: Left	Throws: Left

Matthew Taylor Purke (born July 17, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Washington Nationals organization.

High School Career

While at Klien High School in Texas, Matt was considered one of the best high school pitchers in baseball. His junior year was his best as he went 12-1 with a 0.37 ERA and his senior season he went 4-2 with a 1.18 ERA. His parents were known for driving many miles just to take him to one of his baseball games. He also carried a 4.5 GPA. He came out as a flamethrower throwing an average of 92 MPH and was drafted in the first round (14 overall) by the Texas Rangers in the 2009 MLB Draft but did not sign.

College Career

Purke chose TCU to play college baseball. While there, he earned 2nd Team All American as a Freshman, and was named the Freshman of the year while going 16-0 with a 3.02 ERA. His sophomore year he went 5-1 with a 1.71 ERA in 11 starts. The next year he was drafted in the 3rd Round of the 2011 MLB Draft and opted to sign on an MLB Contract.

Professional career

Purke was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the first round of the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft out of Klein High School in Klein, Texas, but he did not sign and decided to attend Texas Christian University. He was then drafted by the Washington Nationals in the third round of the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft. He was added to the 40 man roster in 2012 and made 3 starts for Class A Hagerstown Suns. He was injured right after and missed the rest of the season. He will begin 2013 with Hagerstown. He signed a major league deal on August 15, 2011.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• TCU Horned Frogs bio