Mike Mayers

Michael Christopher Mayers

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 200 lb.
• School University of Mississippi
• High School Grove City (OH) High School
• Debut July 24, 2016

• Born December 6, 1991 in Grove City, OH USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Pitcher Mike Mayers was a third-round selection by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2013 amateur draft, out of the University of Mississippi. He began his pro career that season with the GCL Cardinals and also played for the Peoria Chiefs of the Midwest League before the year was out. In 2014, he went 8-12, 3.40 in 26 starts between the Palm Beach Cardinals, Springfield Cardinals and Memphis Redbirds, reaching AAA after only a season and a half.

Mike's quick progression up the ladder was slowed in 2015, as he was limited to 12 starts by thoracic outlet syndrome, and when he did pitch, his ERA was a poor 5.87. He spent time with Springfield and the GCL Cardinals on a rehabilitation assignment that season. He got back on track in 2016, however, as he was 5-2, 2.30 in 9 starts for Springfield, and 3-3, 2.94 in 9 starts for Memphis when he got the call to the Show in late July. In his debut, he started the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 24th, but he was battered around, as he allowed 9 runs on 8 hits in only 1 1/3 innings in a nationally televized Sunday night game. In the 1st inning, before he could retire anyone, he loaded the bases with the first three batters he faced, then Adrian Gonzalez tagged him for a grand slam. He was the first pitcher to start off his career in such an awful manner since Joey McLaughlin had done the same thing for the 1977 Atlanta Braves. Howie Kendrick added a three-run shot the next inning to end his outing prematurely. The bullpen then held the Dodgers scoreless the rest of the way, but the damage had been done as Mayers and the Cards lost, 9-6. He had a 60.75 ERA at the end of the game.

On May 29, 2023, he had the best game of his career for the Kansas City Royals against his former team, the Cardinals. Josh Staumont started that day's game with a perfect 1st inning as the Royals' opener, then Mayers kept retiring opponents systematically through seven innings, as the two put in a bid for the first combined perfect game in major league history. That ended when the first two batters in the 8th, Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras, hit back-to-back singles, also ending his outing. However, Taylor Clarke retired the next three batters without a run scoring, and Amir Garrett added a perfect 9th to complete a 7-0 combined shutout, with Mike receiveing credit for the win. In his 6 innings of work, he had allowed just the two hits and struck out three.

Further Reading

• Anne Rogers: "Close to perfection: Mayers, Staumont flirt with MLB history: Royals carry bid for first combined perfect game into eighth inning", mlb.com, May 29, 2023. [1]

Related Sites

• Mike Mayers on mlb.com
• BR Minors page