EAST STROUDSBURG – Former East Stroudsburg University RHP Matt Festa was announced as the Seattle Mariners Minor League Pitcher of the Year in a ceremony at Safeco Field on the final weekend of the regular season.

Festa, an All-America selection at ESU in 2016, became the highest draft pick in program history when he was chosen in the seventh round by Seattle that summer. He spent the majority of the 2018 season with the Mariners' AA affiliate, where he went 5-2 with a 2.76 earned-run average, 67 strikeouts and a league-high 20 saves across 49 innings of work for the Arkansas Travelers.

After earning his first promotion to Seattle on July 14, Festa became the fifth former Warrior to appear in a major league game that evening when he worked a scoreless 2/3 of an inning against the Colorado Rockies. He was sent back to AA on July 16, but would earn two more call-ups during the summer, joining the Mariners for good at the conclusion of the AA postseason on Sept. 11.

Festa ultimately recorded a 2.16 ERA across 8 1/3 innings in the majors. He received his first major league start as an opener against the defending World Series champion Houston Astros on Sept. 19, retiring George Springer, Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman in order during his one inning on the mound.

For the Warriors, Festa went 11-2 with a 2.35 ERA and 105 strikeouts across 88 innings during his senior season in 2016, helping ESU win a program-record 38 games and advance to the NCAA Division II national tournament. He was the first PSAC pitcher in at least a decade to win his first 10 starts of the season. Festa left ESU with career program records in wins (23) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.1).

A total of seven ESU players have been selected in the MLB draft overall, including six over the past 10 years. Festa and outfielder Robert Bennie, chosen in the 24th round by the Oakland Athletics in 2016, were the first ESU teammates selected in the same year in program history.