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Mike Mayers

Blue Jays Sign Mike Mayers To Minor League Deal

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The Blue Jays announced that they have signed Mike Mayers to a minor league deal. The right-hander has also received an invite to major league Spring Training.

Mayers, 32, is coming off a rough couple of seasons. He signed a minor league deal with the Royals last year and was added to their big league roster to serve in a swing role, but posted an earned run average of 6.15 in 26 1/3 innings over six appearances. His 8.4% walk rate was fine but his 14.3% strikeout rate was well below average. He was outrighted off the roster in June and later traded to the White Sox, putting up poor numbers for the Triple-A affiliates of both clubs, finishing with a combined 6.12 ERA at that level.

With the Angels the year before, he tossed 50 2/3 innings with a 5.68 ERA. His 20.2% strikeout rate was better in that season but 20.8% of his fly balls allowed went over the fence, almost double his 12.1% rate from 2023.

The Jays will undoubtedly be hoping for Mayers to return to his 2020-21 form. Over those two seasons, he made 101 appearances for the Halos and logged 105 innings. He posted a 3.34 ERA in that time, striking out 30.5% of opponents while walking just 8%. He moved up the bullpen chart for the Angels in that time, earning four saves and 22 holds.

Per the data at Statcast, his velocity ticked down as his results went south. His fastball velo was above 94 miles per hour in 2020 and 2021 but dropped to 93.5 mph in 2022 and 92.9 mph last year. His slider, cutter and changeup also lost a tick or two over the past two seasons, while his curveball went up slightly in 2022 before dropping in 2023.

Mayers has recently been getting some work in with Driveline Baseball, as they tweeted out some footage of him throwing, as relayed by Keegan Matheson of MLB.com. It seems the Jays were intrigued enough by his recent form to bring him into camp.

That may have been at least partially motivated by some recent developments to players on their roster. Per Matheson, righties Jordan Romano and Erik Swanson are dealing with arm issues, right elbow inflammation for the former and forearm tightness for the latter. Each player underwent an MRI without finding any structural issues, but the club may be precautious with them in the meantime.

If either or both of those guys miss time, the club will have to rely on its depth. Mayers will now jump into that mix and try to earn his way onto the roster. If he does so, he is out of options but he has just under five years of service time. That means the Jays could retain him for 2025 via arbitration if he earns a roster spot and things go especially well this year.

29 Players Elect Free Agency

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October brings postseason play for a handful of teams and their fanbases. Just over two-thirds of the league is now in offseason mode after being eliminated, however. As the season comes to a close, a number of veterans will hit minor league free agency.

These players are separate from six-year MLB free agents, who’ll reach the open market five days after the conclusion of the World Series. Eligible minor leaguers can begin electing free agency as soon as the regular season wraps up. These players were all outrighted off a team’s 40-man roster during the year and have the requisite service time and/or multiple career outrights necessary to reach free agency since they weren’t added back to teams’ rosters.

Electing free agency is the anticipated outcome for these players. There’ll surely be more to test the market in the coming weeks. We’ll offer periodic updates at MLBTR. The first group, courtesy of the transaction tracker at MiLB.com:

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Pitchers

White Sox Acquire Mike Mayers From Royals

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The White Sox have acquired right-hander Mike Mayers from the Royals, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times, with cash considerations heading in the other direction.

Mayers, 31, signed a minor league deal with the Royals in the winter and was deployed as a starter in Triple-A. He took the ball eight times for the Storm Chasers through the middle of May and posted a 6.88 ERA in 34 innings. He was selected to the Royals’ roster at that time and made six appearances, including two starts, for the big league club. He registered a 6.15 ERA through 26 1/3 innings before getting designated for assignment in the middle of June. He cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment and has been back with Omaha in a relief role in recent weeks.

The Sox are 38-54 and seem destined to do some selling prior to the August 1 trade deadline. They’re only eight games back in the weak American League Central but they would have to leapfrog three different clubs to get to the top and are even further back in the Wild Card race. It’s been speculated by many observers that impending free agents will be shopped and Lucas Giolito was recently ranked the #1 trade candidate by MLBTR for that very reason. Other pitchers like Lance Lynn, Joe Kelly, Keynan Middleton, Mike Clevinger and Reynaldo López make some sense as trade candidates to varying degrees, with the club reportedly willing to deal just about any pitcher except for Dylan Cease.

If that indeed comes to fruition and the Sox ship out a few arms from their big league staff, they may need to turn to a few of their depth pitchers in the final months of the season. Mayers has mostly served as a reliever in his career but has also made a handful of starts, including this year, allowing him to potentially fill either role in the months to come. He has a career ERA of 5.21 in 262 2/3 innings dating back to 2016. If he gets selected back to the roster at any point, he is out of options but could be retained for 2024 via arbitration if the club so chooses.

Mike Mayers Accepts Outright Assignment With Royals

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Right-hander Mike Mayers has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Omaha, the Royals announced. He went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment over the weekend.

Mayers will stick in the Kansas City organization. He signed a minor league deal with K.C. last December. They selected him onto the big league club in mid-May. The 31-year-old carried only a 6.88 ERA over eight Triple-A starts at the time, but the Royals needed another multi-inning arm for the MLB staff.

He pitched well over his first few appearances following the promotion. Mayers allowed just two runs in 13 1/3 innings over a trio of games. He surrendered four-plus runs in five or fewer innings in his next three outings, though. That saddled him with a 6.15 ERA over 26 1/3 frames. Mayers had a below-average 14.3% strikeout rate and a modest 8.4% swinging strike percentage before Kansas City took him off the roster.

It’s a second straight down season for the former third-round pick. Mayers posted a 5.68 ERA in 50 2/3 frames with the Angels last year. He’s now a couple years removed from an excellent 2020-21 run with the Halos, when he combined for a 3.34 ERA while fanning more than 30% of opponents in 105 innings out of the bullpen.

Royals Designate Mike Mayers, Select Brooks Kriske

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The Royals announced that right-hander Mike Mayers has been designated for assignment.  Mayers’ roster spot will be filled by fellow righty Brooks Kriske, whose contract was selected from Triple-A.

Mayers signed a minor league contract with Kansas City during the offseason, and when that contract was selected last month, Mayers added an eighth MLB season to his resume by appearing in six games for the Royals.  Working as a bulk pitcher in four outings and as a proper starter in his other two games, Mayers had a 1.35 ERA over his first 13 1/3 innings before things soured, as he has given up 16 earned runs over his last 13 innings of work.

All in all, Mayers has a 6.15 ERA over 26 1/3 frames, with a tiny 14.3% strikeout rate.  Mayers has generally not been a big strikeout pitcher over his career, apart from his two best seasons.  He broke out with a 30.5 K% over 105 innings with the Angels in 2020-21, posting a 3.34 ERA while working mostly out of Anaheim’s bullpen.  However, Mayers struggled in 2022, leading the Angels to outright him to Triple-A before waiving him after the season.

With teams always in need of pitchers who can eat innings, there’s a chance another club could put in a claim on Mayers.  If he clears waivers, Mayers can elect to become a free agent again rather than an accept an outright assignment to Triple-A, since he has been outrighted before in his career.

Kriske was another minor league signing during the Royals’ offseason, as he made a return to North American baseball after spending the 2022 season in Japan.  Pitching for the Yokohama BayStars, Kriske had a 2.57 ERA over 21 innings in Nippon Professional Baseball, while also making 14 appearances for the BayStars’ top minor league team.  Kriske’s MLB experience consists of 15 innings with the Yankees and Orioles in 2020-21, with Kriske posting a 14.40 ERA in that small sample size.

Royals Select Mike Mayers

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The Royals announced Wednesday that they’ve selected the contract of veteran right-hander Mike Mayers from Triple-A Omaha. Lefty Amir Garrett was placed on the family medical emergency list in a corresponding 26-man roster move, while left-hander Ryan Yarbrough was transferred to the 60-day IL in order to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

Yarbrough has been on the 15-day IL since May 7, when he was struck in the face by a comeback line-drive off the bat of A’s first baseman Ryan Noda. The Royals announced on May 9 that Yarbrough would not require surgery but had sustained multiple facial fractures and was entering concussion protocol. Today’s shift to the 60-day IL means he’ll be out until at least early July.

Mayers, 31, has seen big league time in seven prior MLB seasons — all split between the Cardinals and Angels. He posted strong numbers with the 2020-21 Halos, logging a combined 3.34 ERA with a 30.5% strikeout rate, 8% walk rate, 35.9% ground-ball rate and 1.11 HR/9 in 105 innings — picking up four saves and 22 holds along the way.

Unfortunately, Mayers’ 2022 campaign more closely mirrored his rough four-year stretch with the Cardinals; in 50 2/3 innings last year, Mayers was tagged for a 5.68 ERA with diminished strikeout abilities and fastball velocity. He also yielded a career-worst 2.66 homers per nine frames with lofty opponents’ exit velocity and hard-hit rate marks (91.2 mph and 48.1%).

The Royals inked Mayers to a minor league contract over the winter, and he’s spent the 2023 season in their Triple-A rotation, where he’s been hit hard. In eight starts, Mayers has lasted just 34 innings with a 6.88 ERA, a sub-par 18.1% strikeout rate and an elevated 10.6% walk rate.

Kansas City has an off-day today and, as such, won’t need a starter in the near future. They’re lined up with Zack Greinke, Jordan Lyles, Brad Keller and Brady Singer to make their scheduled turns Friday through Monday, so it seems likely that Mayers will step into the bullpen and provide some length. The Royals’ pitching staff as a whole has flopped in 2023, as their collective 5.32 ERA ranks 28th in the sport and leads only the White Sox (5.44) and Athletics (7.18).

Royals Sign Mike Mayers To Minor League Contract

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The Royals have inked right-hander Mike Mayers to a minor league contract, the team announced. The team didn’t specify whether the deal contains a Spring Training invitation, though that seems likely given his MLB experience.

Mayers, 31, has pitched in the majors in each of the last seven seasons. His first four years came in St. Louis, where he was primarily deployed as a depth reliever. Claimed off waivers by the Angels over the 2019-20 offseason, he’d take on a larger role in Orange County. Mayers made 29 appearances and posted a 2.10 ERA during the shortened 2020 campaign. He had another solid showing the next season, working to a 3.84 ERA across 75 frames.

From 2020-21, Mayers tossed 105 innings of 3.34 ERA ball. He struck out upwards of 30% of opponents and held batters to a .225/.294/.380 line over that stretch. The former third-rounder looked like an underrated bullpen find for the Halos, but his production dropped in 2022.

Mayers tossed 16 2/3 innings through the season’s first couple months, allowing a 5.40 ERA. His strikeout rate plummeted to 18.7% and the Angels designated him for assignment at the end of May. He went unclaimed on waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A Salt Lake. The organization stretched him out as a starter, letting him soak up 33 innings through eight appearances. While the results weren’t great, Mayers returned to the majors at year’s end. He picked up three starts down the stretch, working into the sixth inning on two occasions. After the season, the Angels waived him again and he qualified for minor league free agency.

With the bulk of his career experience having come as a reliever, Mayers is probably better suited for that role. The late-season rotation work at least raises the possibility of Kansas City giving him a crack as starting pitching depth. If Mayers makes the Royals roster in either capacity, he’ll have to remain in the majors or again be designated for assignment since he’s out of minor league option years.

34 Players Become Free Agents

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The Wild Card round of the 2022 postseason begins today, but for the majority of teams and players, the offseason is now underway. With that will come plenty of roster formalities, including veteran players who’ve been outrighted off their respective teams’ rosters reaching minor league free agency. This week, there have been 34 such instances throughout the league, per the transactions log at MiLB.com.

None of these are a surprise, to be clear. Any player who is not on his team’s 40-man roster at season’s end but has three-plus years of Major League service time, multiple career outright assignments and/or seven-plus seasons in the minors has the right to elect free agency. Everyone in today’s group of players falls under that umbrella. The majority of the group will likely find minor league deals over the winter, although a few of the players in question could potentially find a big league deal as a bench piece or middle-inning reliever.

There will be several more waves of players of this ilk, and we’ll make note of them in bunches over the coming weeks as we await the launch of Major League free agency, when all unsigned players with at least six years of Major League service time will reach the open market. For now, here’s the first of what will likely be several waves of newly minted minor league free agents:

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Pitchers

Angels Outright Three

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A trio of players designated for assignment by the Angels last week — right-hander Mike Mayers, first baseman Mike Ford and outfielder Magneuris Sierra — went unclaimed on outright waivers, per the league’s transactions log at MLB.com. All three were assigned outright to Triple-A Salt Lake. All three can reject the assignment in favor of free agency right now, though that’s largely a moot point, as all three can also become free agents after the season concludes.

Mayers, 30, is the most experienced of the bunch and has spent the most time with the Angels organization. From 2020-21, he was a regular in late-inning roles for the Halos, recording four saves and 22 holds through 105 innings pitched. In that span, Mayers worked to a sharp 3.34 ERA with a terrific 30.5% strikeout rate and a solid 8% walk rate — easily the best stretch of a big league career that now spans parts of seven seasons.

Unfortunately, Mayers wasn’t at all able to sustain that pace in 2022. He’s pitched 50 2/3 innings this year — third-most of any season in his Major League career — and been clubbed for a 5.68 ERA along the way. His average fastball velocity, which sat 94.6 mph in 2020-21, is down to a career-low 93.7 mph in 2022. He’s also seen his strikeout rate plummet to 20.2%, and after allowing just 1.11 homers per nine innings in 2020-21, he’s surrendered a whopping 2.66 long balls per nine frames this year.

Ford, also 30, has suited up for four big league teams in 2022 alone. The longtime Yankees prospect spent 16 games with the Mariners earlier in the season (across two stints), one with the Giants, eight with the Braves and now 28 with the Halos. Ford has been designated for assignment by each of those teams, however (twice by the Mariners), bringing his DFA total to a whopping five on the year.

Ford impressed in his rookie showing with the Yankees back in 2019, debuting to the tune of a .259/.350/.559 batting line and a dozen homers in just 163 plate appearances. He hit just .134/.250/.276 in 156 plate appearances over the next two seasons before being cut loose by the Yankees, however, and has now logged a combined .206/.302/.313 output in 149 plate appearances between his quartet of new teams in 2022.

Sierra, meanwhile, hit just .165/.200/.242 in 96 plate appearances with the Angels prior to his DFA. The former Cardinals and Marlins prospect is one of baseball’s fastest players, ranking in the 97th percentile for average sprint speed, per Statcast. He’s never gotten on base enough in the big leagues to make much use of his wheels, though, as evidenced by a lifetime .228/.273/.272 slash in 636 plate appearances.

Angels Designate Mike Mayers For Assignment

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The Angels announced that they have reinstated right-hander Archie Bradley from the 60-day injured list with fellow right-hander Mike Mayers being designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Mayers, 30, was already designated for assignment by the Angels earlier this year, which resulted in him clearing waivers, accepting an outright assignment and later getting selected back onto the roster. In total, he’s thrown 50 2/3 innings in the majors but with a 5.68 ERA, 20.2% strikeout rate, 8.1% walk rate and 38% ground ball rate.

Those are disappointing results, especially considering how good he was in the previous two campaigns. Over 2020 and 2021, he logged 105 innings with a 3.34 ERA, 30.5% strikeout rate, 8% walk rate and 35.9% ground ball rate. But since he couldn’t carry that over into 2022, he’s now lost his roster spot for a second time. With the trade deadline long gone, the Angels will only have the choice of placing Mayers on outright waivers or release waivers. If he were to clear waivers, he would have the right to reject the assignment, both because of his previous outrights and having over three years of MLB service time. He did accept an assignment last time this happened, though the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees are the only Angels’ affiliate still playing and their season wraps up tomorrow.

As for Bradley, 30, he was a fairly effective reliever in the previous five seasons but had a frustrating campaign here in 2022. Signed to a one-year, $3.75MM deal in the offseason, he’s spent much of the year on the IL due to an abdominal strain and then an elbow fracture. In between those ailments, he was only able to throw 18 2/3 innings an put up a 4.82 ERA, his highest since he was a starter back in 2016. He was getting ground balls at a solid 57.1% rate but was subpar in the strikeout department, only whiffing 19.2% of batters faced. Now that he’s healthy again, he’ll look to get a few solid outings on the record before returning to the open market in a few weeks.

Prior to the official announcement, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register relayed that Mayers did not have a locker in the Angels’ clubhouse and that Bradley would be activated (Twitter links).

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