Matt Matulia
Florida State University
Matt Matulia brings both collegiate and professional experience to the Florida State baseball program in his first season as the Seminoles' volunteer assistant coach. His primary duties will include directing the outfield and coaching first base, but it's his family background in the game which may be his greatest asset.
The son of a long-time Florida junior college coach, with a younger brother who is climbing the ladder as a player in the Tampa Bay Rays' organization, Matulia brings a breadth of knowledge to Tallahassee.
"Matt had a very good fall," said FSU coach Mike Martin. "He was able to display what all he brings to the table. He communicates well. He has a tremendous work ethic. He brings great experience to the table, not only from his days playing at The Citadel, but his professional days where he was a player-coach. He is what I would describe as a tremendous, up-and-coming, college baseball coach."
A native of Eustis, Florida, where he played his high school baseball, Matulia headed to The Citadel, where he was a four-year letter winner, primarily playing in the infield. He was a member of the 2004 Southern Conference championship team, and earned All-SoCon Tournament honors in 2005, which was his best season.
Following his graduation in 2006 he was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the 24th round of the MLB Draft and spent his entire professional career with the organization, including his final two seasons as the player/coach with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs and the Daytona Cubs of the Florida State League. Iowa manager Bobby Dickerson and Cubs' hitting coach, former major leaguer Richie Zisk, helped open Matulia's eyes to a collegiate coaching career over his final two seasons with the organization.
A meeting with Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin following his 2009 season with the Iowa Cubs provided Matulia with some direction. Corbin suggested trying to latch on as a volunteer assistant.
"I just picked up the phone and started calling people," Matulia said. "[Coach Martin] called back the next day."
He worked the Florida State camp during the 2009 Christmas break, then returned for his final season with the Cubs, handling the infielders in Daytona before joining the Seminole staff this past fall.
The timing - and the destination - could not have been better. Matulia and his wife, Lindsey, were quite familiar with Tallahassee. She attended Tallahassee Community College and he would often come for visits.
"Family is my No. 1 priority," said Matulia, who now has an infant daughter, Emma.
Baseball is very much a family affair with the Matulia's. His father Mike is the athletic director at Lake-Sumter Community College, where he was previously the head coach in the final seasons of a 25-year career. Mike Matulia was also a head coach at Edison Community College in Fort Myers, Gordon College in Barnesville, Georgia, and an assistant at Miami-Dade Community College.
His brother, John, was a 10th-round draft choice of the Rays and spent last season with the Montgomery (Ala.) Biscuits in the Southern League. He also has a younger brother, Jake, who plays youth baseball.
Following his playing days at The Citadel, Matulia worked his way through the minors as a middle infielder and utility player. In 2006 he played for the Cubs' short-season Class A team in Boise and a year later rode a fast start at Daytona to a spot on a Florida State League All-Star team. He was promoted to the Cubs' Southern League affiliate, the Tennessee Smokies, in 2008 before his playing career stalled. Matulia saw his last significant playing time as a player/coach with the AAA Iowa team in 2009.
Matulia, 26, is more than willing to share his professional baseball experiences with the Seminoles; many of whom have aspirations of continuing their careers after college. Yet that's only part of the lore of the college game.
"The bottom line here is winning baseball games," said Matulia, who has aspirations of running his own program at some point. "I wanted to be involved in a winning program."
