Nelson Elmer Mathews (born July 21, 1941) is a retired American professional baseball outfielder who appeared in the Major Leagues (MLB) from 1960 to 1965 for the Chicago Cubs and Kansas City Athletics. Born in Columbia, Illinois, he graduated from high school in that community and signed with the Cubs in 1959. Mathews threw and batted right-handed, stood 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) tall and weighed 195 pounds (88 kg). In 306 career MLB games played, Mathews collected 218 hits, with 39 doubles, 14 triples and 22 homers. He batted .223 lifetime with 98 runs batted in.