Blue Jays: Tim Mayza makes strong case for himself ahead of 2019

Toronto Blue Jays reliever Tim Mayza made a strong case for himself ahead of the 2019 season with an impressive scoreless innings streak to end the season.

Tim Mayza finally appears as though he has harnassed his potent repertoire and is poised to become a staple at the back of the Blue Jays bullpen. The southpaw concluded the 2018 campaign on an 18-game scoreless innings streak where the 26-year old had did not allow a run.

Since the streak began on August 25th, Mayza lowered his earned run average from an inflated 5.85 to a tidy 3.28. During the stretch, Mayza fanned 19 batters while walking four in 15.2 innings of work over 18 appearances. Through the month of September, the opposition his just .152 off the big lefty.

Mayza stranded 23 of the 27 runners he inherited in 2018 while limiting hitters to a .179 batting average with runners in scoring position. His savvy in the clutch propelled himself to one of the most trusted arms for skipper John Gibbons.

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The southpaw had similar splits limiting left-handed batters to a .233 average while righties hit a touch better at .253 throughout the course of the season.

The hurler actually struggled more in Triple-A this season however that may have been attributed to the constant shuffle back and forth to Toronto during the first half. In 20 appearances with the Bisons, Mayza sported a 6-2 record with a 4.56 earned run average.

Prior to this past season, Mayza owned a 6.88 earned run average in 19 games during his rookie season in 2017. Even with the bloated peripheral numbers, Mayza showed promise fanning batters at 14.3 SO/9  clip last season.

Down the stretch, Mayza was arguably the Blue Jays best reliever setting himself up nicely for 2019 in what should be a season of flux and a revolving door in the bullpen. Mayza should compliment Ryan Tepera and Ken Giles at the backend of the rotation when the game is on the line.

We will see if Mayza can continue his scoreless streak when the new season commences on March 28th.