University of Minnesota Athletics
Senior Spotlight: Matt Halloran
4/24/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Matt Halloran (Eden Prairie, Minn.) is in his fifth year with the Gophers after missing most of 2014 with an injury. The catcher has caught a plethora of Maroon and Gold pitchers, been part of some memorable games and continued a family legacy in the program.
Q: How important was it to you to get that fifth year of eligibility rather than going out on an injury?
A: It was huge. There wasn't a whole lot of doubt that I would get it just because it happened the first game of the year, but you don't find out until after the season, so there is a little bit of doubt in your mind. But there was no doubt in my mind I wanted to come back. It was an easy decision.
Q: Being one of the fifth-year guys, do any of your younger teammates tease you about being old?
A: I get called "grandpa" all the time, even though I'm the youngest fifth-year senior. I get teased all the time for being old, about being here. I'm that guy now--Dan Olinger was last year--who when you look at the roster you say, "That guy's still here?"
Q: You've caught a lot of different pitchers in your time here. Are there any of them who have been especially memorable or enjoyable to catch?
A: Pretty much our Friday guys all the way through--TJ Oakes, Alec Crawford, Tommy Windle. They've all been lights out. They just make it easy. Pretty much anything you put down, they're gonna execute it, and it doesn't really matter. It makes calling games easy. It makes games go a lot faster.
Q: How do you feel your game as a catcher has developed--calling games, blocking pitches--since you've been at the U?
A: I think my freshman year I had a lot of passed balls and a lot of balls get by me, so I think just adjusting to the speed of the game and trying to slow things down was the biggest adjustment. Right now I think I'm really confident in my defensive ability. I think my hitting hasn't developed as I wanted it to but right now I'm really comfortable with the defensive aspects of catching.
Q: What is it like having your dad, Mike, who also caught here, watching you play?
A: I love it. He's been such a supportive role model for me. He used to be a coach, so you'd think he'd be the guy going, "Why are you doing this with your stance?" or "Why are you doing that?" but he doesn't. He shows up and he watches the game and he just loves being there. He's really supportive and not still trying to coach me even though I'm his son.
Q: Have you had any entertaining conversations with any batters or umpires behind the plate?
A: My junior year at Iowa, the catcher on their team who got hit to lose the game on Friday--he got beaned, leaned into a pitch--when he came up the next game, I said, "Do you want us to hit you somewhere other than that pad? Because we will today." He got all flustered. My next at bat, I came up with the bases loaded and I watched two straight strikes. He goes, "Are you gonna swing, or are you gonna strike out looking?" I hit a double on the next pitch to clear the bases. That was one of my most memorable conversations by far.
Q: Do you know what you're going to do after this year?
A: I'm going to do financial planning at Minneapolis Financial Group. It's in an office downtown. I did an internship there last summer and really liked it, so I'm going to continue that.
Q: What have been some of your off-field memories during your Gophers career?
A: The bus rides and the trips--playing euchre, playing mafia and just hanging out with the guys. You spend so much time with them, especially the last couple years with how much we've traveled. You spend so much time with the team. Those are the things you're gonna remember. You're not gonna remember losing to Texas a couple. You're not gonna remember the scores of the games. You're gonna remember hanging out with the guys and being part of the team. Those are the things that are going to stick with me.
Q: Any games that do stand out?
A: The Twins game is definitely going to be something I'll remember. The Michigan game my sophomore year just because it's such a rivalry, and the one that I hit the walkoff home run. That was definitely one of the highlights of my career. Hopefully I'll have another one towards the end of my career--hopefully we can bring home a Big Ten title. Other than that, there aren't too many games that stick out much in my mind.
