Matthew Antonio Antonelli (born April 8, 1985) is an American former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

second baseman In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and f ...

who played in

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(MLB) for 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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

in 2008. He is currently a baseball coach and host of a

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channel of baseball instructional videos and discussions about his time in the major leagues.

Early life

During his senior year at St. John's Prep in

Danvers, Massachusetts Danvers is a New England town, town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the Danvers River near the northeastern coast of Massachusetts. The suburb is a fairly short ride from Boston and is also in close proximity to the beach ...

, Antonelli was named the Massachusetts High School Player of the Year in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

and

hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

and runner-up in baseball, and was selected to the all-state team in hockey. He was drafted in the 19th round (571st overall) of the

2003 Major League Baseball draft The 2003 Major League Baseball draft, was held on June 3 and 4. It was conducted via conference call with representatives from each of the league's 30 teams. ''Source:MLB.com 2003 Draft Tracker' First round selections Supplemental first r ...

by the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. He did not sign and instead chose to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

at Wake Forest, where he displayed good plate discipline,

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an " inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults o ...

57 times as a sophomore. He only

struck out In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safel ...

38 times in 232 at-bats, giving him one of the best

strikeout-to-walk ratio In baseball statistics, strikeout-to-walk ratio (K/BB) is a measure of a pitcher's ability to control pitches, calculated as strikeouts divided by bases on balls. A hit by pitch is not counted statistically as a walk, and therefore not counted in ...

s in the nation. In 2004 and 2005, he played

collegiate summer baseball Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operat ...

with the

Falmouth Commodores The Falmouth Commodores are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Falmouth, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Commodores play their home games at Arnie All ...

of the

Cape Cod Baseball League The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over 1,000 forme ...

and was named a league all-star in both seasons.

Professional career

San Diego Padres

Antonelli was drafted as a

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

by the

with the 17th pick in the first round of the 2006 Major League Baseball draft. In July 2007, Antonelli was named the best second base

prospect Prospect may refer to: General * Prospect (marketing), a marketing term describing a potential customer * Prospect (sports), any player whose rights are owned by a professional team, but who has yet to play a game for the team * Prospect (minin ...

in the minor leagues by Kevin Goldstein of

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. In 2006, he hit 14

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s in 82 games for High-A

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, before moving up to the AA

San Antonio Missions The San Antonio Missions are a Minor League Baseball team based in San Antonio, Texas. The Missions compete in the Texas League as the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The team plays its home games at Nelson W. W ...

to finish the season. In 534 at-bats between the two levels, Antonelli finished with a slash line of .304/.404/.491 with 21

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run ...

and 25

stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base unaided by other actions and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or out ...

s along with a 94/83 K/BB ratio. He won the

Texas League The Texas League is a Minor League Baseball league which has operated in the South Central United States since 1902. It is classified as a Double-A league. Despite the league's name, only its five South Division teams are actually based in the ...

Championship with the Missions in 2007. In 2008, Antonelli was called up to the major leagues for the

and on September 1, 2008, he promptly laced a single off

Greg Maddux Gregory Alan Maddux (born April 14, 1966), also known as "Mad Dog" and "the Professor," is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily with the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs. ...

of the

for his first hit in the major leagues. He then went hitless in his next 20 at bats, but then got 7 hits in his next 13 at-bats with three walks, including his first home run, on September 15, off of

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...

pitcher

Jason Hirsh Jason Michael Hirsh (born February 20, 1982) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros and Colorado Rockies. He stands at 6' 8" and weighs . He batted and threw ...

. During spring training in 2010, he suffered a

hamate bone The hamate bone (from Latin hamatus, "hooked"), or unciform bone (from Latin '' uncus'', "hook"), Latin os hamatum and occasionally abbreviated as just hamatum, is a bone in the human wrist readily distinguishable by its wedge shape and a hook- ...

injury and then a broken wrist, requiring multiple surgeries. While the club kept him on the official roster he was unable to play, and was granted free agency at the end of the 2010 season. The hand injuries became a chronic issue throughout the rest of his career.

Washington Nationals

Antonelli signed as a minor league free agent with the

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. They play their home games at Na ...

on December 17, 2010 and spent the season with the AA

Harrisburg Senators The Harrisburg Senators are a Minor League Baseball team who play in the Eastern League, and are the Double-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. The team is based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and play their home games at FNB Field on Cit ...

and AAA

Syracuse Chiefs Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

. His wrist injury recurred with a handful of games remaining in the season and he left the team shortly after the conclusion of the season.

Baltimore Orioles

On November 21, 2011, Antonelli signed with the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

. He was then added to the team's 40-man roster. On May 13, 2012, the Orioles designated him for assignment.

New York Yankees

On May 17, the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

claimed Antonelli off waivers from the Orioles. He was designated for assignment on July 1 and released on July 5. His wrist injury woes continued, preventing him from playing a significant amount of game time.

Cleveland Indians

Antonelli signed a minor league contract with the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...

in January 2013. He played through spring training, and was sent down afterwards to the AAA

Columbus Clippers The Columbus Clippers are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They are located in Columbus, Ohio, and are named for speedy Merchant ship, merch ...

. Later in the season, the Indians informed Antonelli they were going to release him from the team. After receiving minor interest from

independent baseball Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

teams he retired on July 17 to take up coaching.

Post-playing career

After retiring, Antonelli received several calls from independent league teams. However, he declined all of those offers due to his injury history and his belief he could not make it back to the Major Leagues, and decided to focus on a potential career of coaching. Antonelli has a

channel, ''Antonelli Baseball'', for which he makes baseball-related videos. He also has a MLB: The Show series on his channel where he plays the game's "Road to the Show" mode that gained popularity. The channel has more than 249,000 subscribers and over 105 million views as of May 2024. He also served as an assistant baseball coach at

Holy Cross Holy Cross or Saint Cross may refer to: * the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus * Christian cross, a frequently used religious symbol of Christianity * True Cross, supposed remnants of the actual cross upon which Jesus was crucified * Feast o ...

and his alma mater Wake Forest. In June 2025, Antonelli was named the head baseball coach at Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts. He is married to his wife, Laura.

References

External links

Minorleaguebaseball.com profile
*
Antonelli Baseball
on

{{DEFAULTSORT:Antonelli, Matt 1985 births Living people Baseball players from Essex County, Massachusetts Major League Baseball second basemen San Diego Padres players Eugene Emeralds players Fort Wayne Wizards players Lake Elsinore Storm players San Antonio Missions players Portland Beavers players Arizona League Padres players Harrisburg Senators players Syracuse Chiefs players Norfolk Tides players Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players Columbus Clippers players Wake Forest Demon Deacons baseball players YouTubers from Massachusetts American people of Italian descent Falmouth Commodores players Sports YouTubers St. John's Preparatory School (Massachusetts) alumni Sportspeople from Peabody, Massachusetts