Matthew Festa is a pitcher for the Seattle Mariners in Major League Baseball (MLB). He is 6 feet 1 inch tall. Festa attended St. Joseph by the Sea High School in Staten Island, New York.
He began his college baseball career at Dominican College, where he played for one year for the Dominican Chargers before moving to East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania, where he played for three years for the East Stroudsburg Warriors. The Seattle Mariners selected him with the 207th overall pick in the seventh round of the 2016 MLB draft.
Festa pitched in 14 games for the Everett AquaSox of the Low-A Northwest League in 2016, earning a 6–2 record with a 3.73 earned run average (ERA) (eight starts).
Festa made the Mariners’ Opening Day roster in 2019. Festa was sent down to Triple-A multiple times during the season, ending his 2019 season with just 20 appearances for Seattle. On February 3, 2020, Festa was designated for assignment and outrighted on February 10.
On March 5, 2020, Festa underwent Tommy John surgery, ending his 2020 season before it began. He returned to action in August 2021 for the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers, and tossed 21.1 innings of 2.95 ERA ball for the team, also appearing in 4 rehab games with the High-A Everett AquaSox and AZL Mariners. On April 7, 2022, the Mariners selected Festa’s contract, adding him to their opening day roster.