Pittsburgh Pirates News: Bryan Reynolds To Bereavement List; Drew Maggi Recieves The Call

With Bryan Reynolds being placed on the bereavement list and Ji-Man Choi moving to the 60-day IL, Drew Maggi will get his chance to play Major League Baseball after a long-awaited 14 straight minor league seasons.

The Pittsburgh Pirates will be without Bryan Reynolds for the next few days as he was recently placed on the bereavement list. They also moved Ji Man Choi to the 60-day IL (retroactive to his original IL placement on April 14) to make room for journeyman minor leaguer Drew Maggi, who could make a very nice story today.

Maggi was originally a draft pick by the Pirates over a decade ago in 2010. The 15th round pick out of Arizona State University never did much throughout the minor leagues. His best year was 2014 when he batted .280/.382/.340 at Double-A Altoona. Maggi had a 12.1% BB% and 13.8% K-rate, and used his ability to get on base to his full advantage. He swiped 37 bags, but got caught stealing 19 times.

But the Pirates let go of Maggi after 2014. The infielder would bounce across baseball for the next handful of seasons, playing for the LA Angels, Dodgers, Cleveland, Minnesota, and Philadelphia’s minor league teams. Last season, Maggi split his campaign for the Pirates’ and Phillies’ Triple-A affiliates, but batted a mere .212/.324/.274. He still walked at a respectable 11.6% rate and swiped 22 bases, but that was about where the positives ended for Maggi.

The Pirates brought Maggi back for 2023, and he made a serious bid for an Opening Day roster spot during Spring Training. Maggi batted .344/.417/.688 with three home runs in 36 plate appearances. Although he was one of the Pirates’ best pre-season hitters, he was still optioned down to Altoona to start the year. So far, Maggi only has six hits in 33 plate appearances. However, given Altoona’s proximity to Pittsburgh compared to Indy, and the Pirates needing a last minute call-up, it makes sense to get a guy from Double-A instead.

Maggi isn’t in today’s starting line-up, but there’s a good chance we see him make an appearance later in the game. This is, obviously, a very feel-good story for baseball. Maggi is now in his age-34 season and 14 years into his professional baseball career. You have to feel good for the guy, even if it’s only a temporary promotion. Here's to Drew Maggi for sticking with his craft for nearly 15 years, as he could make his long-awaited debut today.