CLEVELAND — When asked who he's rooting for in the MLB postseason, Matt Kata says, "I'm gonna just be rooting for my former team." He then shrugs and laughs.
Kata is in a league of his own. The former infielder is the only player in Major League Baseball history to play for all four of this year's League Championship Series teams - the Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers and Houston Astros.
"There's, obviously, a lot of guys who have played the game and a lot of guys who played for multiple teams, so to be the only one - it's pretty cool to be part of that history. I guess it's all just timing," says Kata.
Kata, who suited up for five different clubs across his five year MLB career, will be a winner no matter who wins the World Series this year.
"It is cool. Win or lose, in the end, whoever the last one standing is - I can at least say I got to wear that uniform and be a part of it," says Kata.
Despite his affiliations to the remaining teams, there's one distraction for Kata. His hometown team is on the outside looking in - and that's tough to shake.
"To be honest, I'm just still upset I'm not watching the Guardians in the postseason," says Kata.
Kata was born in Avon Lake, grew up in Mentor and attended St. Ignatius High School. He never played for the Guardians, but he worked in the club's front office for seven years after retiring from playing. He served as Cleveland's Manager of Youth Baseball Development and Initiatives from 2014 to 2021.
"I always say I would've loved to have officially put on a Guardians uniform and play for them," says Kata.
About two years ago, Kata, his wife and their two children moved out of Northeast Ohio. They made a "family decision" to relocate to Texas, where Kata works as a banker.
"I kinda did a 180 and got an opportunity to work in the banking industry. The bank that I work for is just a local, community bank here in the Central Texas, Austin area," explains Kata.
Of course, even though he's playing on an entirely new field now, Kata's current employer still has a baseball connection.
"It's called R Bank. A little bit of ties to baseball - Nolan Ryan and some of his investors kind of started the bank, and it's grown from there," says Kata.
Regardless of where he lives, one thing never changes, though. Kata remains a die-hard Cleveland sports fan.
"Cleveland will always be home," states Kata.
Carly Mascitti is a sports anchor at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on Twitter @carlymascitti.
