MATT KATA

'Matthew John Kata' (born on March 14, 1978 in Fairview Park, Ohio) is a professional baseball player in the the Pittsburgh Pirates organization of Major League Baseball. He stands 6'1" and weighs 195 lbs. He is a switch hitter and throws right-handed.
Kata graduated from St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland, Ohio in 1996 and attended college at Vanderbilt University. He was selected by Arizona in the ninth round of the amateur draft and made his major league debut for the Diamondbacks June 15, 2003. He also played briefly for the Philadelphia Phillies in and the Texas Rangers in .^[1]
Along with Robby Hammock, Alex Cintron and Brandon Webb, he was one of the "Baby Backs" who were called up when a surge of injuries hit Diamondbacks veteran players in . The Baby Backs were popular and contributed to a winning season, but ultimately failed to make the playoffs.^[2]
Kata was signed to a minor league contract by the Texas Rangers in November 2006^[3]
and was a non-roster invitee to their 2007 spring training camp. He earned a spot on the team's opening day roster as a utility player.^[4]
He appeared in 31 games for Texas before he was designated for assignment June 5 when the Rangers activated pitcher John Rheinecker and infielder/outfielder Jerry Hairston from the disabled list.^[5]
After clearing waivers, he signed a minor league contract with Pittsburgh June 15 and was recalled by the Pirates June 30.

Contents

Trivia

References

External links

Trivia

★ Before batting at home, "Headstrong" by Trapt is played over the public address system.

References

1.
Texas Rangers 2007 Media Guide, , , , Major League Baseball, ,
2.
2003: Finest moment Bob McManaman
3.

4.
Notes: Rangers finalize 25-man roster
5.
Notes: Teixeira part of team's future

External links

★

★

★ The Baseball Cube player page