Nelson Elmer Mathews is a retired professional baseball player who played outfielder

Outfielder

Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...

 in the Major Leagues from -. He played for the Chicago Cubs

Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...

 and Kansas City Athletics.

Mathews was signed by the Cubs as an amateur free agent

Free agent

In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....

 prior to the 1959 season

1959 Major League Baseball season

-Awards and honors:*Most Valuable Player**Nellie Fox, Chicago White Sox **Ernie Banks, Chicago Cubs *Cy Young Award**Early Wynn, Chicago White Sox *Rookie of the Year**Bob Allison, Washington Senators...

, and made his major-league debut with the Cubs in . After the 1963 season

1963 Major League Baseball season

The World Series winners were the Los Angeles Dodgers, who swept the New York Yankees in four straight games. The Dodgers' stellar pitching staff, anchored by left-hander Sandy Koufax and right-hander Don Drysdale, was so dominant that the vaunted Yankees, despite the presence of sluggers such as...

 he was traded to the Athletics for Fred Norman

Fred Norman

Fredie Hubert Norman , is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1962–1964, 1966–1967, and 1970-1980....

.

Mathews' son, T. J. Mathews

T. J. Mathews

Timothy Jay Mathews is a former professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of eight season in Major League Baseball, primarily as a relief pitcher, from 1995 to 2002....

, had an 8-season MLB career as a relief pitcher

Relief pitcher

A relief pitcher or reliever is a baseball or softball pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed due to injury, ineffectiveness, fatigue, ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as being substituted by a pinch hitter...

.

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