Matt Garza and the Central Valley Baseball Club (CA) competed at Cooperstown Dreams Park in 1996.

Matt graduated from and played baseball and football for Washington Union High School (Fresno, CA). The right-handed pitcher was named to the baseball All-State team during his scholastic career, helping the baseball team to a 23-6 record his senior year (2002). Matt continued playing baseball at the collegiate level with Fresno State (Fresno, CA). During his freshman season (2003), Matt made 19 appearances, including nine starts. As a sophomore (2004), Matt went 6-3 on the mound with five saves and was awarded the team’s Outstanding Pitcher Award. At the end of his junior year, the Minnesota Twins chose Matt as the 25th pick of the 2005 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.

Matt quickly rose through the minor league level, starting the 2006 season playing single-A and ending at the major league level. Matt made his major league debut on August 11, 2006. He began the 2007 season in the minors but was called back up to the major league on June 28th. Matt was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays just after the 2007 season. During the 2008 season with Tampa Bay, Matt posted an 11-9 record with a 3.70 ERA and was named MVP of the American League Championship Series. Matt remained in Tampa Bay through the 2010 season. He was traded to the Chicago Cubs in 2011 where he played until July 2013 when Matt went to the Texas Rangers. After the 2013 season, he played for the Milwaukee Brewers where he finished his career.