Many of the littlest things associated with baseball don’t slip past Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Isaac Matson.
By all accounts, Mattson will be a key member of the Pirates’ bullpen brigade in 2026. At the end of last season, the impression Mattson left with the organization couldn’t have been more direct. 44 games, a 2.45 ERA, and with a grit to his game endeared Mattson to Pittsburgh fans as well as the club’s front office.
Mattson’s road to the Pirates last season, one that established the Erie, Pennsylvania native as a full-fledged MLB arm, took amazing twists and turns. Before and after making his big-league debut with the Baltimore Orioles in 2021 (4 games), his travels are fascinating to review, though not unique in pro ball.
The road to the Pirates, when Mattson made three appearances during the 2024 season, begins pitching at the University of Pittsburgh. Over three years, the right-handed reliever was called upon in 60 games. The 109 strikeouts collected in 95.3 innings of work were attractive enough that the Los Angeles Angels took a chance on Mattson, drafting him in the 19th round of the MLB Draft in 2017.
Over the following nine seasons, Mattson was on the move – a lot. There was his introduction to the pros with the Orem Owlz in Utah. Next up, the Midwest League in 2018 as a member of the Burlington (Iowa) Bees. That same season, there were some games spent with the Inland Empire 66ers in San Bernardino, California, too.
In the following seasons, Mattson navigated through the Triple-A level in Norfolk, Virginia, and with the pitching staff for the Salt Lake (Utah) Bees of the Pacific Coast League, two stints in independent ball, and Double-A took a shot at his arm in Texas, as well. Oh, there was time spent in the Southern League with the Mobile (Alabama) BayBears in 2019.
You get the picture. Establishing himself with the Pirates last year didn’t come easy for Mattson. A lot of miles were put in to finally get an opportunity to prove himself as a big leaguer. Along the way, the memories have piled up from the many stops for the kid who grew up on the south shore of Lake Erie.
“I look back at those road trips; some good memories, and sometimes not so fond memories. When I was in rookie ball in the Pioneer League, we had some trips that were 13 hours – one way up into Montana,” Mattson said prior to the Pirates Grapefruit League home opener at LECOM Park. “On the bus, you just buddied up with someone. Back then, there were no roster limits. Sometimes, there would be like 35 to 40 players on the bus.”
Recalling teammates sleeping on the floor of the bus, others stringing up hammocks to catch some shut-eye, the bus loads of ballplayers found ways to make it like home sweet home. Finding a way to “just make it through” became the norm for Mattson.
One of his fondest memories of his travels through the minor leagues was waking up at 4 a.m. as the bus made its way through Montana, seeing nothing but mountains all around and the sun creeping over them.
“As a kid, our family was always traveling. My parents took us to visit national parks,” says Mattson. “Riding the buses with my teammates, there were a lot of gas station stops. Me and my teammates would always pack a hot plate. We would find a grocery store, and cook on the plate, on the bus.”
In the PCL, there were flights and bus rides to manage. During a brief stint in 2019 with Salt Lake in the last couple of weeks of the season, Mattson remembers waking in the early morning hours with his teammates to catch the first flight out of Tacoma, Washington, for El Paso, Texas.
“There’s a grind associated with that,” Mattson says.
Throughout his career travels, Mattson says he has taken many photographs of places he has landed in. Among the memories, Mattson has collected dirt from the warning tracks of the stadiums that he has played in.
“I think I’m up to 22 of the 30 stadiums. For now, I keep the dirt in water bottles.”
Going back to the beginning of his baseball journey, Mattson proudly says that he keeps in touch with his host family from his season in Burlington. From his first flight on a charter as a big leaguer to staying in four-star hotels, Mattson hasn’t taken anything for granted as a member of the Pirates.
Looking forward to his first full season with the Pirates beginning late next month, Mattson won’t be needing a hot plate or making grocery runs while in transit from one MLB city to the next. What he will be piling up are more memories in appreciation for the privilege of being a Pittsburgh Pirate.
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