FRUITPORT – The bigger high school baseball players, like Fruitport’s Cody Matuz (6-foot-4, 215 pounds), are typically the power guys, not speedsters who are going to swipe bases.

But Fruitport senior pitcher/outfielder Cody Matuz doesn’t fit the profile. He’s done a lot of different things to help the Trojans to a 6-1 start this season, including a 5-0 O-K Green conference record, with his right-handed bat, his left-handed pitching arm, and even his base-stealing ability.

“He moves good for a big guy,” said head coach Nick Reed about his senior leader. “People look at him and think he isn’t going anywhere. But he moves good and gets good jumps and leads when on base.”

Matuz is more than ready to take off and steal, like he did in a game against Reeths-Puffer at Marsh Field last week.

He ripped a double in the fifth inning, stole third, then shocked everyone in the park by successfully stealing home.

“I actually like stealing,” said Matuz, who plays all over in the outfield after playing first base last season. “I stole home. which was really cool, and I had never done it before. Our coach asked me if I thought it would work, and I told him no. But he told me to go anyway, and I tried to get as big of a lead as I could.

“I timed the pitcher up and took off. I just put my head down and saw the ball get away. I was kind of in shock that it worked.”

When Matuz isn’t roaming the outfield, he’s often on the mound for the Trojans, and has posted two big wins already this season.

One of his best outings came against Western Michigan Christian, when he struck out 10 and walked only two in four innings of work.

“He’s so cerebral,” Reed said about the pitching ability of Matuz, who is 2-0 with 29 strikeouts and has given up only one earned run in 14.2 innings of work. “He’s a smart kid and he knows when his mechanics are off and how to fix it. He knows what hitters are trying to do and has a plan for them.”

While Matuz has quality stats on the mound, he doesn’t believe he’s pitched to his full capability yet this season.

“I’ve had a couple great outings and one not so great,” said Matuz, who is one of three left-handers in the Trojans’ starting rotation (they all bat right-handed). “I’ve thrown too many balls and left some balls over the plate that I need to locate better.”

As a hitter, Matuz is also dangerous, batting an impressive .483 with six doubles and seven RBIs so far this season. He frequently has multiple hit games, and recently had two hits and three RBIs in a win over Coopersville.

“He’s just patient and knows what he’s looking for,” said Reed about Matuz, who was All-Conference, All-District and All-Region in baseball last season, and earned honorable mention All-State honors. “He knows what pitch he wants to get, and very rarely swings out of the zone. He very rarely misses his pitch when he gets it.”

While Matuz’ contributions are impressive on the field, his obvious leadership qualities and desire to win may be his strongest assets.

“It’s really important to me,” said Matuz about being looked upon as a leader. “We have three underclassmen who are starters. It’s important that I step up and lead by example however I can.”

The Trojans are hopeful that Matuz will lead them to continued success this season and help them win a few trophies along the way.

“Our big goal is to win a district title,” Matuz said. “We think it’s reachable with the skill and talent that we have. It’s what we really want to get done this year.”