Report: Yankees sign former Blue Jays reliever Tim Mayza to minor-league deal

Tim Mayza is staying in the AL East.

According to a report by The Athletic's Katie Woo and Brendan Kuty on Wednesday, the New York Yankees have signed the former Toronto Blue Jays reliever to a minor-league contract.

Mayza was designated for assignment by Toronto on June 29, then cleared waivers and was subsequently released on July 5.

The 32-year-old struggled to replicate his stellar form of last season for Toronto, which earned him high-leverage outings throughout the 2023 campaign. His ERA ballooned throughout his final five outings with the Blue Jays, rising to nearly 25 over a tough four-inning stretch.

For the season, the southpaw carried an 8.03 ERA over 24.2 innings.

"It comes down to performance," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said after Mayza was designated for assignment. "It's tough for Timmy. He's been here for such a long time, been such a big part of our bullpen and our team.

"(It's) been a rough year for him, so, hopefully, a change of scenery is good for him, as much as we hate seeing him go."

Selected by the Blue Jays in the 12th round of the 2013 draft, Mayza pitched with Toronto for parts of seven seasons, racking up 283.2 innings with a 3.87 ERA and 292 strikeouts.

The Yankees bullpen has recently undergone a barrage of injuries, with Ian Hamilton, Jonathan Loáisiga and Nick Burdi all landing on the injured list in recent weeks.

New York is likely to have Mayza start in triple-A with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The Yankees rank ninth in bullpen ERA (3.64), but their lefties have posted only a 4.16 mark.

Things have not been going well in the Bronx after a quick start. The Yankees have lost 17 of their last 23 games and have fallen 3.0 games behind the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East.