Matthew Brian Meadows (born November 21, 1975) is a retired

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weat ...

. Meadows pitched with the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The fran ...

for two years. He won 11 games in back to back seasons (1998, 1999) despite having an ERA over 5.00 in those seasons. In 2000, he was traded to the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

, he made 22 starts for the Padres before being traded to the Kansas City Royals. He finished the season with a record of 13-10 and an ERA of 5.13 in 33 games. In 2001, he had a 1-6 record with an ERA of 6.97 in 10 games for the Royals. He was released following the 2001 season. In 2002, Meadows signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates. From 2003-2005, Meadows pitched exclusively out of the bullpen for the Pirates, appearing in a total of 167 games over that span. In 2006, Meadows signed with the

Tampa Bay Devil Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home ve ...

. He had a 5.17 ERA in 53 games for the Devil Rays. He retired following the 2006 season from baseball. Meadows graduated from Charles Henderson High School in

Troy, Alabama Troy is a city in and the county seat of Pike County, Alabama, United States. It was formally incorporated on February 4, 1843. Between 1763 and 1783, the area where Troy sits was part of the colony of British West Florida.The Economy of Bri ...

, where he played

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

. In the offseason, he designates time and effort in support of the Garth Brooks' Teammates for Kids Foundation. Meadows is also involved in the March of Dimes program in

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

. He was originally signed by

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

scout

Bill Singer William Robert Singer (born April 24, 1944) is an American former professional baseball pitcher with a 14-year career from 1964 to 1977. He played primarily for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1964–72) and the California Angels (1973–75), spending h ...

. Meadows was invited to spring training with the Cincinnati Reds, but he did not make the team.

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1975 births Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Baseball players from Montgomery, Alabama Florida Marlins players San Diego Padres players Kansas City Royals players Pittsburgh Pirates players Tampa Bay Devil Rays players Gulf Coast Marlins players Kane County Cougars players Brevard County Manatees players Portland Sea Dogs players Omaha Royals players Nashville Sounds players {{US-baseball-pitcher-1970s-stub