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During Week 2 in 2003, the AZ Bounty Hunters (AZ) competed at Cooperstown Dreams Park. One of the members on the roster for the AZ Bounty Hunters was Matt Hobgood.
Matt's baseball career continued at the high school level, playing for Norco High School (Norco, CA), where he was a starting pitcher and powerful hitter. A four-year baseball letter winner, Matt led his team to back-to-back playoff appearances in the CIF Southern Section Division playoffs (2008 and 2009). Although Matt missed much of his freshman season (2006) due to a fractured ankle, he set 14 season and career records at Norco High School (Victories, Won-Loss Percentage, Games Pitched, Innings Pitched, Shut-outs, Runs Scored, Homeruns, RBI, and Slugging Average). Matt also broke the Riverside County (CA) single season high school home run record, hitting 21 during his senior year (2009). Matt's accolades include Best Pitcher (2006-2007), First Team All League (2007), and All-Riverside County Honorable Mention (2007).
Matt completed his senior year (2009) with an 11-1 record, 0.92 ERA, 101 strikeouts, walked 26 in 68 1/3 innings while hitting 21 homers and batting .475 as a first baseman. Between his junior and senior years, he compiled a 21-1 record on the mound and 40 homeruns. These stats led the way for Matt to receive the 2009 Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year award. Two days after receiving the award, Matt was a first round pick by the Baltimore Orioles and the 5th overall selection in the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft.
In his first season at the minor league level, Matt had a 1-2 record with a 4.72 ERA in eight games, playing for the Bluefield Orioles (Bluefield, WV) of the Appalachian League. He played for the Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds (Salisbury, MD) during the 2010 season. In 2011, he was with the Rookie League's Gulf Coast League Orioles (Florida) and then the short-season Class A Aberdeen IronBirds (Aberdeen, MD) of the NY-Penn League.
In addition to baseball, Matt played football and basketball in high school. He was a center and power forward in basketball and offensive line in football.
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