Tim Mayza

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Timothy Gerard Mayza

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Biographical Information[edit]

Left-handed reliever Tim Mayza became a footnote to history on September 28, 2022, he surrendered Aaron Judge's 61st homer of the season, allowing him to tie the American League record set by Roger Maris in 1961 and had stood for six decades. The home run, hit with a man on base in the 6th inning, broke a 3-3 tie and burdened Mayza with his first loss of the year, after being the winning pitcher in his first eight decisions, as the New York Yankees ended up as 8-3 winners. There had been quite a frenzy around the record, as Judge had hit #60 more than a week before: special baseballs were used for each of Judge's at-bats, and opposing pitchers had been pitching him carefully, normally aiming for the lower end of the strike zone. Howeve, Judge had been very disciplined, drawing a lot of walks while waiting for his opportunity. Mayza thought he had got him to miss at strike three just before leaving a ball a bit too high in the zone, and Judge crushed it to left field at the Rogers Centre for a no-doubt homer.

Mayza first reached the majors with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2017 after the team had selected him in the 12th round of the 2013 amateur draft. He did not do particularly well that first year, going 1-0, 6.88 in 19 games, but in 2018 emerged as a reliable reliever, going 2-0, 3.28 in 37 outings. He then spent a full season with the Jays in 2019 and was 1-3, 4.91 in 51 1/3 innings as he struggled with arm issues in September. He had to undergo Tommy John surgery and missed all of 2020 as a result.

He had become a bit of a forgotten man by the time he made it back to the majors in 2021, but established himself as the top lefty in the bullpen with his best season to date, finishing at 5-2, 3.40 in 61 games and earning his first career save. He was on his way to another very good season in 2022 when he suffered a scare on August 6th, dislocating his right shoulder when he dived to attempt to tag a baserunner at home plate in a game against the Minnesota Twins. At first, it looked like he was done for the season, but once the shoulder was popped back in place, he was able to work out and was back on a major league mound on August 24th. He was part of the small group of high impact relievers who carried the Blue Jays for a good part of the season when the offense was going through fits and starts and the starting rotation was having trouble pitching deep into games with the exception of ace Alek Manoah. He, closer Jordan Romano, and right-handed set-up men Yimi Garcia, Adam Cimber and Anthony Bass were all pitching exceptionally well and keeping the Blue Jays in the postseason race.

Further Reading[edit]

  • Keegan Matheson: "What's it like to give up a historic HR? Let this Blue Jay tell it", mlb.com, September 29, 2022. [1]

Related Sites[edit]

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