GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Rising junior Matt Karis of the Gettysburg College baseball team was recently featured in the following article written by Rich Thompson on BostonHerald.com. Karis, who is enjoying an outstanding summer as a pitcher with the first-place Lexington Blue Sox of the Intercity Baseball League (ICL) near Boston, is coming off a sophomore season in which he went 5-3 with a 3.75 ERA for the Bullets.

Lexington Blue Sox manager Rick DeAngelis recruited his staff ace from a leafy campus that hosted the deciding battle of the Civil War.

DeAngelis will entrust the honor of the Intercity League to Gettysburg right-hander Matt Karis when it takes on the Boston Park League in the annual ICL-BPL All-Star Game today at 2 p.m. at Lexington High. DeAngelis will manage the ICL All-Stars because the Blue Sox are the defending league champions.

Middle infielder Chris Simard, a Lexington kid who plays for Gettysburg, referred Karis (Southboro) to DeAngelis back in the fall.

“It helps with recruiting when you have one kid from a school or a town who tells his buddy or teammate you might want to come and play for the guy I play for this summer,” DeAngelis said. “That's what happened with Matt Karis, he called me in October and wanted to know if I had a spot for him.”

Karis will throw the game's first pitch despite being an ICL rookie. Going into Friday's match against the Wakefield Merchants, Karis was 5-0 with four consecutive shutouts. Karis had thrown 33 innings, allowed 10 hits and five earned runs (1.06 ERA) with 10 walks and 23 strikeouts

“Matt Karis is projected to be the starter and he's earned the right to start,” DeAngelis said. “Matt is on a very good pitching staff and right now he's the best of the best.

“Everything he throws moves. He throws fastball, slider, cutter and change-up and he's about 6-foot-3, 210 (pounds).”

The Blue Sox were overstocked with starting pitching, so DeAngelis had no idea how he might use Karis when they met for lunch in October. DeAngelis thought about a bullpen assignment but changed his mind once Karis got to training camp.

“When I finally got an actual look at him in baseball uniform throwing, I said, 'My God, this kid throws the ball lights out,' ” DeAngelis said. “I knew I would be starting him every fifth or sixth day.”