Matthew Hunzinger '21 Recruiting Profile

I currently play as a starting catcher for Kaskaskia College, and I'm an Agriculture major. I’ve always loved playing baseball.  Regardless of what team I was on, I’ve always been a team leader.  I have a really strong work ethic, and I am the first one to take the field during practices and games.  I am also persistent, dedicated, and work well with others. I am very coachable and keep my emotions in check.  

I am proudly from the small rural town of Dieterich, Illinois which is mostly involved in agriculture.  My high school is very small, but my parents have exposed me many times to larger cities, cultural diversity, and many athletic opportunities throughout the midwest and southern United States.  In addition to my love for baseball, I also enjoy hunting, fishing, farming, 4-wheeler riding, golfing, and trap shooting. 

I'm a good student, and I am dedicated to academics.  I am looking for a transfer college or university with a strong agriculture, business, or engineering program.  It is also important that the school’s baseball program is successful and plays good competition.  After that, I am open to any geographic location, any school type, or any school size. 

I am currently successful both academically and athletically at Kaskaskia College and currently have a 4.00 GPA.  I was also successful in high school.  I earned a 3.99/4.00 GPA. I won the Star Greenhand Award, the Freshman Outstanding Leadership Award, the Sophomore Outstanding Leadership Award, and was club secretary in my school’s Future Farmers of America (FFA) chapter.  I was president of my FFA chapter for my junior year. Athletically as a freshman, I batted lead-off for the Varsity baseball team, and I won awards for highest batting average and highest on-base percentage.  As a sophomore, I batted third for the Varsity baseball team, and I won awards for highest slugging % and most RBIs. Although I am mainly a catcher, my pitching is really getting strong. I finished the Spring '19 season with a 1.73 ERA with 32.1 innings pitched and striking out 58 batters. No academic or athletic awards were given in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but I lead my team in the Fall '19 season with a .377 batting average, slugging percentage of .717, and on base percentage of .527.  I also lead my team with a 1.51 ERA striking out 39 batters in 32.1 innings. 

In addition, I was also successful twith my travel team, the Decatur Commodores, based out of Decatur, Illinois.  The team consisted of top players throughout central Illinois. I live 1 hour and 40 minutes south of Decatur, which shows my commitment and love for the game by putting in that type of travel commitment to play on a strong team.  For the Commodores, my primary position was catcher.  I also pitched and played third base.

As you can see, baseball is a big part of my life.  With my experience in leadership, competitiveness, academics, people skills, and my talent for baseball, my goal is to play college baseball for a program in which I will contribute any way I can.