GRUNDY CENTER - Its a warm, humid June evening and Matt Wagners baseball cap is saturated with perspiration.

So is every other item of clothing he wears as he toes the pitching rubber and leans toward home plate for the sign from his catcher.

At 6-foot-5, Wagner is an imposing presence on the mound. Always has been.

His first pitch is a fastball that cracks the catchers mitt and echoes through the air like a rifle shot. His next pitch is a wicked slider on the outside corner that buckles the batter for strike two. Now Wagner has his opponent right where he wants him and, like a shark on the scent of blood, he closes in for the kill with a riding fastball at the letters. The batter swings and misses and heads to the bench where plenty of his teammates will be joining him as this night wears on.

Its a scene that has been part of Wagners life for nearly 20 years and one that has taken him to places few baseball players ever get to see.

From Cedar Falls High to the University of Arkansas and Iowa State, Wagner built an impressive amateur resume. In 1994, he was rewarded when the Seattle Mariners made him the 77th player taken in Major League Baseballs amateur draft.

Armed with a fastball clocked in the mid-90s and big-league breaking stuff, Wagner made a rapid climb through a talent-laden Mariners farm system. In two years, he was in the majors and sharing a clubhouse with future Hall of Famers and stars like Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez, Randy Johnson, Edgar Martinez and Jay Buhner.

Shoulder problems derailed his promising career. He was traded to Montreal after the 1996 season, but never got a chance to build on the credentials that made him one of Seattles top five prospects during his brief stay with that organization.

Now Wagners career has come full circle. At the relatively young age of 32, hes a family man and father. Hes taken on a new career with Community National Bank in Waterloo. And hes in the process of moving his family from Des Moines back to the Cedar Valley.

When he takes the mound these days, its for the Grundy Center Gamecocks in the Iowa Valley amateur league. But whether hes facing Albert Belle or the cleanup hitter for Walford, its still baseball.

And, for now, Wagner is content with that.

King of the hill

Like most aspiring big-leaguers, all Wagner wanted was a chance to show what he could do after being drafted. He got it in the Midwest League, and Seattles front office followed his progress closely. In July, the Mariners brass took a closer look.

"I signed in June of 1994 and at the end of July the Phillies were playing the Mariners in the Hall of Fame game," he recalled. "They called up four or five minor league pitchers, and I was one of them.

"I wound up throwing three innings and gave up maybe one hit, and I got the win. That was a big confidence boost for me. It basically told me that the big league guys were really not that much different than the minor league guys. Theyre just more consistent at what they do."

Wagner split his second professional season between AA and AAA. A year later, he was in the bigs. His got his first start at Jacobs Field in Cleveland against Charles Nagy, who was in the midst of a career season.

"I remember it like it was yesterday," he said. "It was on national TV as part of an ESPN doubleheader. It was right after Albert Belle had done his forearm job to Vina, and their home crowd was giving him a standing ovation every time he came up.

"He stood in the on-deck circle and just milked it. I just kept thinking, ‘Come on, get up here."

In the second inning, the Indians had a runner on base and Wagner slide-stepped out of the stretch. That brought manager Lou Piniella out of the dugout.

"He said, ‘You dont have to slide-step every pitch. I said, ‘Thats all I do. He just said, ‘OK, son. Go get em. The Fox Sports Northeast guys said that was the quickest visit theyd ever seen Piniella make."

Seattle lost that game, although Wagner threw six strong innings and left with the score tied, 3-3.

His first win came at Comiskey Park against the Chicago White Sox. The Mariners won big, and Wagner left after eight innings. He fondly recalls catcher Dan Wilson presenting him with the game ball later.

"It was one of those moments they can never take away from you," he said. "Right away, I stuck that ball in my pocket. It wasnt going anywhere."

By the time October arrived, the Mariners were pursuing a spot in the playoffs, and Wagner headed to the bullpen. Seattle was being blown out by Oakland when Piniella called on Wagner to stop the bleeding.

"(Mark) McGuire hit a 481-foot home run off me in the Kingdome," Wagner explained with a smile. "That was my only relief appearance. He just crushed it.

"He hit it so well I was just like, ‘Holy cow. Normally, you wouldnt watch it, but I actually turned around and watched that one."

That was only half the story.

Bob Wolcott had started the inning for Seattle, and McGuire greeted him with a 474-foot bomb into the upper deck.

"In the history of the Kingdome, there were maybe 25 balls or so that had ever been hit into the upper deck, and he does it twice in one inning," related Wagner. "Another one of our pitchers, Chris Bosio, sent a ball to McGuire with the distance of the home runs and who they were hit off. McGuire liked that, but he sent it back to have Wolcott and I sign the ball. In return, he sent us each a signed bat."

Two years later, McGuire was with St. Louis and Wagner was with Montreal in spring training at Jupiter, Fla., where they shared a workout complex. One of Wagners former Seattle teammates, Rusty Meacham, introduced him to Wagner.

"He asked McGuire if he remembered that ball and he was like, ‘Yeah, Ive got it on display at my house. I thought that was pretty neat.

"Ive given up my share of home runs in my day, but that was definitely the most impressive."

The rest of the story

After his 3-5 debut season, Wagner, Trey Moore and Chris Widger were dealt to Montreal for Jeff Fassero and Alex Pacheco in late October of 1996.

Wagner never pitched in another Major League game. He developed shoulder problems the following spring.

"The first surgery was a scope of the rotator cuff and labrium in May of 1997," he explained. "In May of 98, I had a full-blown shoulder reconstruction. My third surgery was in the winter of 99, which was another scope with Dr. Jobe out in Los Angeles."

Wagner was never the same.

"At that point, I basically told Montreal that I needed to go back and finish school. My rehab was going nowhere," he recalled. "My arm was just killing me. I would make a throw and it was like my whole arm would go numb. I thought I had nerve damage.

"When I left Montreal, physically I thought Id never be able to play again. I was just worried about day-to-day stuff like opening a cupboard or being able to play golf or play catch with my daughter."

Rest was just what Wagner needed. As his arm began to feel strong again, he began to entertain thoughts of a comeback.

"I quit a job in Des Moines — fulltime with benefits and everything — to go out to Newark (N.J.) to play," he said. "It was really kind of a gamble, but you live once, and I didnt want to sit there five years down the road when the opportunity wouldnt have been there for sure and wish I would have tried."

On a Newark team in the independent Atlantic League that included base-stealing superstar Rickey Henderson, Jamie Navarro and Jose Lima, Wagner took one final shot.

"I wound up having a good year, but the fact that I didnt get picked up kind of told me teams were still hesitant," he said. "I felt confident I could have repeated the year I had last year, but even if I did, it wasnt good enough the year before.

"So, it was just time to get out of it. I answered the questions I had for myself by going out there."

No regrets

There are times when Wagner watches former teammates and rivals whose careers took more fortuitous turns. He was as close as a player can get to establishing himself as proven Major Leaguer.

"It crosses my mind," he admitted. "At least I walked away saying I did give it 100 percent, which is settling.

"But to sit and watch Derek Lowe pitch a combined shutout at Coors Field … I roomed with the guy in AA for a short while. Hes making millions, and I blew by him in the organization. There are other examples like that.

"I was blessed to have the opportunity to do what I did. I had a lot of fun, and there are a ton of stories. Ive seen stuff I can talk about, and Ive seen stuff I wont talk about."

The experience was about more than the confrontations between pitcher and hitter or the battles between division rivals. It was about everything that is Major League baseball.

"It was being around the superstars of the game. It was about the history of the different stadiums where we played and knowing that Babe Ruth and Mickey Mantle and all of the Hall of Fame guys came through there.

"Its playing with Griffey and Alex Rodriguez and Randy Johnson and Pedro Martinez and Vladimir Guerrero. Its unbelievable the opportunities I had to be exposed to guys with that kind of talent every day.

"It was pitching against (Pat) Hentgen when he won the Cy Young Award in 1996 and going head-to-head with (Mike) Mussina, who is another guy Ive always admired.

"It was seeing Ernie Banks in Texas one day or Kirby Puckett or Cal Ripken. One day after I pitched in Baltimore, Jim Palmer came up to me and said, ‘Hey, you did a great job last night.

"Its the little stuff like that."

Once a pitcher …

Now Wagner is mowing down hitters in the Iowa Valley League whenever he gets a chance. Last Sunday in Des Moines, he threw five shutout innings with 11 strikeouts. In nine total innings this season, he has struck out 20 batters with no walks."The reaction we get is usually, ‘Who is this guy? Where is he from?" said Phil Johnson, manager of the Grundy Center club. "I normally just tell them its Matt Wagner from Cedar Falls."

Wagner feels good.

"The velocity is there," he said. "My arm isnt in as good of shape right now as I would like it to be. Last year I know I was throwing in the low 90s for sure. The scouts confirmed that.

"But its not 94-95 and topping out at 96 like it was pre-surgery. I guess thats one of the things that made teams hesitant."

Wagner can live with that.

"For me, having the camaraderie of a team is fun," he said. "And Im still competitive. When I take the ball, I take it seriously. I still want to go out there and win."

In some respects, amateur baseball represents the game in its purest form. Its players who are playing for the love of the game.

"There is the aspect that the pressure is off," said Wagner. "You dont have some guy from the organization looking at you and saying, ‘Is he ready to be moved up? You dont have to face the press after the game when you lose or whatever."

There are plenty of competitive challenges in the Iowa Valley league, too, where ex-collegiate players and a few former pro prospects dot the rosters.

"Some of the older players around the league remember him and know about him, and a lot of the other managers have asked if hes going to be here today," said Johnson. "It is unusual to have an ex-Major Leaguer on the mound, but its a league that has a lot of ex-pro players, as well."

Wagner has been a positive influence on many of his Gamecocks teammates.

"I think hes great for the college kids on our team to see how he carries himself and how he goes about his preparation and routine," said Johnson. "Hes obviously a very talented individual, but Matt really works at what hes doing, as well. Hes just a great guy to have on the team. Hes always willing to do whatever is asked of him."

As for his pitching, Wagner has never been one to take anything for granted.

"There are a lot of guys out there who can play the game," said Wagner. "When I step out on that mound, I know Id better be focused and be on my game.

"Otherwise, it will be a long day."