PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates‘ pitching woes deepen as injuries persist.
The team placed left-hander Tim Mayza on the 15-day Injured List and called up right-hander David Bednar from Triple-A Indianapolis.
Pittsburgh Pirates’ left-handed reliever Tim Mayza has landed on the 15-day Injured List, further straining the team’s bullpen. Mayza, who has posted a 2.89 ERA across seven appearances and 9.1 innings this season, allowed nine hits, struck out eight, and walked one, with opponents batting .243 against him. His most recent outing was in a 10-7 loss to the Cleveland Guardians on April 18, where he pitched 1.2 innings and gave up one earned run.
A native of eastern Pennsylvania, Mayza excelled in baseball, soccer, and basketball at Upper Perkiomen High School in Red Hill. He continued his baseball career at Millersville University, a Division II program, where he dominated as a junior in 2013, finishing with an 11-3 record, a 1.55 ERA, and 91 strikeouts over 98.2 innings. That performance earned him a 12th-round selection by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2013 MLB Draft, signing for a $100,000 bonus.
Mayza climbed through Toronto’s minor league system for over four years before debuting on August 14, 2017. That season, he made 19 relief appearances, struggling to a 6.88 ERA across 17 innings but striking out 27 with only four walks. In 2018, he split time between the Blue Jays and Triple-A Buffalo, posting a 2-0 record, a 3.28 ERA, and 40 strikeouts in 35.2 innings for Toronto.
His 2019 season saw a 4.91 ERA over 51.1 innings in 68 appearances, with a 1-3 record and 55 strikeouts. That September, a torn UCL required Tommy John surgery, sidelining him for all of 2020. Mayza bounced back in 2021, delivering a 5-2 record, a 3.40 ERA, and a career-best .206 opposing batting average over 61 games. In 2022, he notched a career-high eight wins against one loss, a 3.14 ERA, and 44 strikeouts in 63 appearances.
Mayza’s 2023 season was his finest, with a career-low 1.52 ERA, a 3-1 record, and 53 strikeouts in 69 games. However, 2024 was a struggle, as he posted an 8.03 ERA in 35 appearances for Toronto. The Blue Jays designated him for assignment on June 29 and released him on July 5. The New York Yankees signed him to a minor league deal on July 10, and after a 2.16 ERA in eight Triple-A appearances, he was called up on August 16. With the Yankees, he pitched 15 times, finishing with a 4.00 ERA and appearing in three postseason games, including closing out Game 4 of the World Series.
Non-tendered by the Yankees on November 22, Mayza signed a minor league contract with the Pirates on January 27. Now, he joins four other Pirates pitchers on the 40-man roster currently on the Injured List: starters Jared Jones and Jovan Oviedo (60-day IL) and relievers Colin Holderman (15-day IL) and Dauri Moreta (60-day IL).
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