Scott Mathieson knows how the business of baseball works.
He's done his best to keep a positive attitude through every obstacle and, on Friday, he faced another difficult moment. He was going back to the Phillies Triple-A affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. He'd pitched three innings for the Phillies, giving up five hits, and allowed no runs. Then he was heading back to Lehigh where he's spent parts of two seasons.
"I expected when [Jose] Contreras came off that someone would have to get sent down, but I was a little disappointed that it was this early," he said Friday afternoon.
This time around, Mathieson took the times he was actually needed in stride.
"I didn't get to throw too much, that's always tough. I felt good getting in last night, getting two innings. I felt a lot better with those two innings. Hopefully my command was a bit better and hopefully they saw something, that they feel I can help them out down the road."
Not throwing a lot wasn't something he let bother him. He stays true to the process of preparation.
"It never helps not throwing a lot. But I try to get game-ready in the bullpen and I feel like you're still throwing. I try to stay sharp."
When he gets back to pitch for the Iron Pigs and takes the ball, there are things Mathieson needs to work on and he knows it.
"I'm definitely going to just keep working on my off-speed pitches, And try to get guys out. I started feeling a lot better with my fastball yesterday and hopefully I can just build on that. I got some angle on the ball. I was able to elevate the ball and get on a few guys and create some angle and that's the biggest thing as a pitcher, especially a fastball pitcher."
Mathieson remains optimistic, despite this latest detour back to the minors. He has a lot more to prove and he's ready. Still, taking the drive back to join his teammates in Lehigh is a let down.
"The motivation is always to get to the big leagues. I love to pitch. And I get to pitch a lot more in Lehigh. But I'd definitely rather be with the Phillies right now."