Written by Greg Fertel | 13 March 2007

I just got finished with the SATs, so right now numbers are not my friend. EJ does a spectacular job of putting together stats and figures, so I've been trying to come up with something to do until the season begins that puts faces behind the stats. I'll go through and dig up archives of everything I can possibly find to figure out who exactly we're watching here. If you want me to research anyone in particular, leave a comment. Matt DeSalvo is considered one of the most intelligent and quirky players on the Yankees farm . He doesn't care about the fact that he wasn't drafted. Instead of sitting in the dugout like the typical non-starting pitcher, DeSalvo wanders. I've seen him in the Press Box, checking scores, playing catch with the mascot and sitting in the stands. When he feels like it, he watches the game. But this ballplayer's behavior doesn't stop with the nomadic tendencies; Matt DeSalvo is a literary fiend.

From the NY Post: "While in the Florida State League two years ago, DeSalvo decided he could better understand a wilting romance and himself if he put his thoughts into a novel and he wrote "Love Travels," which remains on computer disc. He majored in environmental sciences and reads "Ideas of the Great Philosophers" while the clubhouse buzzes around him. I don't know about the Yankees, but those of us who cover baseball need Matt DeSalvo to make it."

From MLB.com: "Right-hander Matt DeSalvo is a voracious reader, currently working on a selection of five books at once. He was ripping through the H.P. Lovecraft classic, "At the Mountains of Madness," before Torre's meeting on Tuesday."

He also answers questions with questions - a Moose Junior if there ever was one.

On whether he’d describe himself as a power pitcher: “What is a power pitcher? I don't have a power fastball, but are guys with more strikeouts than innings pitched not power pitchers because they don't have what is considered good stuff? To me, a power pitcher is a guy with desire who makes pitches and refuses to lose. If I tried to throw 95 mph, my arm would probably fly into the stands like a broken bat. But I can get hitters out. Maybe a good word to describe me would be ‘tricky.’” On whether pitching is more psychology or more math: “It's both. Isn't math psychology? If you're at bat, you're going to adjust to what I'm throwing you. If I throw you the same pitch two times in a row, in a certain zone, what are the chances I'll throw a third? Isn't it more likely I'm going to add or subtract, or go to another spot? But what if I don't? Do I have you thinking about that?” [DOES HE?! DOES HE?! GET THE POLYGRAPH!]

Unfortunately for CTU, DeSalvo's just a ballplayer. His numbers from last season reflect personal issues and his own overthinking getting to him. He did pull out of his nosedive during the playoff run, so here's to hoping that his issues are behind him and he can continue to excel.

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