Mike Mayers

Mike Mayers
Mayers with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2018
St. Louis Cardinals – No. 59
Pitcher
Born: (1991-12-06) December 6, 1991
Grove City, Ohio
Bats: Right Throws: Right
MLB debut
July 24, 2016, for the St. Louis Cardinals
MLB statistics
(through 2018 season)
Win–loss record 3–2
Earned run average 7.15
Strikeouts 54
Teams

Michael Christopher Mayers (born December 6, 1991) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB).

Amateur career

Mayers attended Grove City High School in Grove City, Ohio where he played football, basketball, and baseball. He grew up a fan of the Cleveland Indians.[1] As a junior at Grove City, he was 10-1 with a 1.57 ERA and as a senior he compiled a 4-2 record with a 3.80 ERA.[2] He was not drafted out of high school in the 2010 MLB Draft and he enrolled at the University of Mississippi where he played college baseball for the Ole Miss Rebels.[3] On May 13, 2013, he was selected as a Southeastern Conference Co-Pitcher of the Week. In his junior year, he posted a 2.83 earned run average (ERA) over ​92 1⁄3 innings pitched (IP) with 73 strikeouts (SO) and 37 bases on balls (BB). Overall, in his college career, he posted a 12−9 win–loss record (W−L) with a 3.42 ERA and 171 strikeouts in 215 innings. He decided to forgo one remaining year of eligibility and avail himself to the Major League Baseball draft.[4]

Professional career

The St. Louis Cardinals selected Mayers in the third round of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft.[5] He signed and made his professional debut with the GCL Cardinals before being promoted to the Peoria Chiefs, where he finished the season. In 36.1 innings pitched between the two teams, he posted a 1-3 record and 2.97 ERA. He spent 2014 with the Palm Beach Cardinals, Springfield Cardinals, and Memphis Redbirds, compiling a combined 8-12 record, 3.39 ERA, and 1.37 WHIP in 26 starts between the two teams. In 2015, Mayers was 2-4 with an ERA of 5.87 for the GCL Cardinals and Springfield, and underwent surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS).[6][7] Recovered from TOS, Mayers progressed through the two highest minor league levels in 2016. First, he pitched for Springfield,[7] where he was a mid-season All-Star.[8] Over nine starts for Springfield, Mayers was 5−2 with a 2.30 ERA. He was then promoted back to Memphis in May.[9]

The Cardinals selected Mayers' contract from Memphis on July 23, 2016, and announced that he would make his Major League Baseball (MLB) debut the following day against the Los Angeles Dodgers on national television on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball.[7] He had a 3-3 record and 2.94 ERA over nine starts for Memphis prior to his promotion. In his debut, each of the first four batters he faced in the first inning reached base, and all scored on a grand slam by the fourth, first baseman Adrian Gonzalez.[10] In all, 10 of 14 batters reached base as Mayers surrendered nine earned runs, eight hits, and two walks, while recording four outs for an in-game ERA of 60.75. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, he became the first major leaguer to surrender at least nine runs while advancing through fewer than two innings in his debut.[11] Said opposing starter Scott Kazmir of Mayers, "I felt for him, yeah. It's your debut, it's hot and it's on ESPN. It was a tough draw for him."[12] The Cardinals optioned him back to Memphis the day after his first major league start.[11] He got his first win, in relief on September 6, in Pittsburgh, pitching a perfect eighth inning.[13]

During spring training 2018, Mayers pitched 12 scoreless innings, striking out 13, earning him a spot on the Opening Day roster.[14] He was optioned to Memphis and recalled back to St. Louis six before being recalled for a seventh, and final time, on June 8.[15] He was placed on the disabled list for the first time in his major league career on August 26 with right shoulder inflammation,[16] and activated on September 11. Mayers finished his 2018 campaign with a 2-1 record and a 4.70 ERA in fifty relief appearances.[17]

References

  1. ↑ https://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/cards-notebook-mayers-earns-three-inning-save-after-unexpected-call/article_4cb475ad-0906-5dd9-9c5c-4c9789f38898.html
  2. ↑ http://www.thisweeknews.com/sports/20180206/baseball-mayers-aims-to-stick-with-cardinals
  3. ↑ Znidar, Mark (April 16, 2010). "Going to school: Mike Mayers, Grove City". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved July 23, 2016.
  4. ↑ DiRenna, Frank (July 3, 2013). "Mayers signs with St. Louis Cardinals". ThisWeekSports.com (Grove City Record). Retrieved July 24, 2016.
  5. ↑ Thornburg, Chad (June 7, 2013). "Righty Mayers elated to join Cards' organization". MLB.com. Retrieved July 23, 2016.
  6. ↑ Mike Mayers Stats, Highlights, Bio | MiLB.com Stats | The Official Site of Minor League Baseball
  7. 1 2 3 Frederickson, Ben (July 23, 2016). "Mayers, back from thoracic outlet syndrome, to start Sunday for Cardinals". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved July 24, 2016.
  8. ↑ Langosch, Jenifer (June 14, 2016). "Wong getting work in center field in Minors". stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Mike Mayers Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  10. ↑ Hummel, Rick (July 25, 2016). "Rough welcome for rookie, another home series loss for Cardinals". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  11. 1 2 Leitch, Will (July 25, 2016). "Mike Mayers and baseball's cruelty". Sports on Earth. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  12. ↑ Mayes, Warren (July 25, 2016). "Cardinals' Mayers battered in ML debut; Dodgers win 9−6". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Cardinals 9, Pirates 7". MLB.com. September 6, 2016.
  14. ↑ "It's 'mission accomplished' for Cards righthander Mayers". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved March 25, 2018.
  15. ↑ https://www.foxsports.com/midwest/story/st-louis-cardinals-tyler-lyons-disabled-list-mike-mayers-recalled-060818
  16. ↑ https://www.foxsports.com/midwest/story/mike-mayers-placed-on-dl-dominic-leone-recalled-ryan-sheriff-released-in-trio-of-moves-082618
  17. ↑ https://www.kmov.com/sports/st-louis-cardinals-player-grades-bullpen/article_cc2452f8-c799-11e8-b8cb-7f5bc9257887.html
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