Tyler Ryan Jay (born April 19, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the New York Mets. Jay played college baseball at the University of Illinois and was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the first round of the 2015 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2024 with the Mets.

Tyler Jay
Jay with the Fort Myers Miracle in 2016
Milwaukee Brewers – No. 54
Pitcher
Born: (1994-04-19) April 19, 1994 (age 30)
Lemont, Illinois, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
MLB debut
April 11, 2024, for the New York Mets
MLB statistics
(through July 30, 2024)
Win–loss record0–0
Earned run average4.70
Strikeouts6
Teams

Career

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Amateur career

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Jay attended Lemont High School in Lemont, Illinois. He played both baseball and football at Lemont. Jay committed to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to play college baseball for the Fighting Illini. As a freshman, he appeared in 18 games, pitching to a 1–3 win–loss record with a 3.10 earned run average (ERA) and 20 strikeouts. As a sophomore in 2014, he took over as the closer and had 10 saves, a 1.94 ERA and 47 strikeouts.[1][2] After the season, Jay played for the United States collegiate national team during the summer,[3] and also played collegiate summer baseball for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox of the Cape Cod Baseball League.[4][5] As a junior in 2015, he had a 1.08 ERA, 76 strikeouts and 14 saves.

Minnesota Twins

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Jay was considered one of the top prospects for the 2015 Major League Baseball draft.[6][7][8] The Minnesota Twins selected him with the sixth overall pick.[9] He officially signed with the Twins on June 17 and was assigned to the Fort Myers Miracle where he posted a 3.93 ERA in 18+13 innings pitched. The Twins transitioned Jay into a starting pitcher with Fort Myers in 2016,[10] where he posted a 5–5 record with a 2.84 ERA in 13 starts before being promoted to the Chattanooga Lookouts where he pitched to a 5.79 ERA in five games (two starts). He pitched only 11+23 innings in 2017 due to injury. Jay returned in 2018 to pitch for the Chattanooga Lookouts, compiling a 4–5 record with a 4.22 ERA in 38 games. Jay would begin the 2019 season with the Chattanooga Lookouts where he posted a 1–2 record with a 4.82 ERA in 17 appearances.[11] In 2019, he began struggling to swallow as a result of eosinophilic esophagitis and started to lose weight, which correlated with a decline in his on-field performance.[12]

Cincinnati Reds

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On June 10, 2019, Jay was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for cash considerations.[13] Jay would spend the rest of the 2019 season between the Pensacola Blue Wahoos and the AZL Reds where he posted a 0–0 record with a 3.03 ERA in 18 appearances and a 0–0 record with a 9.00 ERA in two appearances respectively.[14] He did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[15] On June 1, 2020, Jay was released by the Reds.[16]

Joliet Slammers

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By 2022, Jay's health problems which had correlated with his decline in performance were attributed to a diagnosis of eosinophilic esophagitis. After spending 2021 out of baseball and focusing on his health, Jay asked Joliet Slammers manager Daniel Schlereth for a tryout[12] and signed with the Frontier League team on June 7, 2022.[17] In 22 appearances for Joliet, he registered a 1.64 ERA with 24 strikeouts and eight saves in 22 innings of work. In 2023, Jay made 20 appearances (7 starts) for the Slammers, logging a 4–3 record and 4.26 ERA with 64 strikeouts and seven saves in 57 innings pitched.[18]

New York Mets

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Jay during the 2024 Spring Training

On August 24, 2023, Jay's contract was purchased by the New York Mets organization.[19] He spent the remainder of the year with the Triple–A Syracuse Mets, posting a 6.00 ERA with 8 strikeouts across 6 appearances.[20]

Jay began the 2024 season back in Syracuse, logging a scoreless appearance for the affiliate to start the year. On April 10, 2024, the Mets selected Jay's contract and promoted him to the major leagues for the first time.[21] He made his MLB debut the next day, pitching two innings against the Atlanta Braves.[22][23] In his second appearance, he recorded two scoreless innings against the Kansas City Royals. However, on April 17, Jay was designated for assignment after Michael Tonkin was claimed off waivers.[24] He was outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse two days later after going unclaimed off waivers.[25] On June 30, the Mets purchased Jay's contract, adding him back to the major league roster.[26] However, on July 2, he was optioned back to Triple–A having made just one appearance.[27] Jay was designated for assignment a second time on July 17.[28]

Milwaukee Brewers

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On July 21, 2024, Jay was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for T.J. Shook.[29]

References

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  1. ^ J.J. Wilson Correspondent. "Father's early coaching molded Illini pitcher Tyler Jay". The State Journal. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  2. ^ Chicago Tribune (February 13, 2015). "Lemont's Tyler Jay making his pitch for Illinois". Daily Southtown.
  3. ^ Lauren Traut (June 6, 2014). "Lemont Native Tyler Jay Earns Invite to USA Baseball... – Patch". Lemont, IL Patch.
  4. ^ "11 high draft picks from Cape League now millionaires". capecodbaseball.org. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  5. ^ "Tyler Jay". pointstreak.com. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
  6. ^ "MLB scouts descending on Illini Field regularly". Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  7. ^ "Tate: Jay an intriguing prospect for pro scouts".
  8. ^ "Jay catching eye of MLB scouts". ILLINOISHOMEPAGE.
  9. ^ "Minnesota Twins take Illinois pitcher Tyler Jay with No. 6 overall pick in draft". Twin Cities.
  10. ^ "Minnesota Twins' Tyler Jay strikes out career-high 11 in eight two-hit innings for Fort Myers Miracle – MiLB.com News – The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  11. ^ "Tyler Jay Stats, Highlights, Bio – MiLB.com Stats – The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved October 20, 2018.
  12. ^ a b DiComo, Anthony (April 10, 2024). "'What a great story': How Tyler Jay resurrected his baseball career". MLB.com. Major League Baseball. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  13. ^ RotoWire Staff (June 10, 2019). "Reds' Tyler Jay: Traded to Reds". CBS Sports. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  14. ^ "Tyler Jay College, Amateur, Minor, Fall & Independent Lg Stats". baseballreference.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  15. ^ "2020 Minor League Baseball season cancelled". mlb.com. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  16. ^ "Tyler Jay Stats, Fantasy & News". MiLB.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  17. ^ "2022 Transactions – Frontier League". frontierleague.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  18. ^ "Mets Sign Tyler Jay". frontierleague.com. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  19. ^ "2023 Transactions". frontierleague.com. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  20. ^ "Tyler Jay – Stats – PItching". fangraphs.com. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  21. ^ "Mets Transfer Kodai Senga To 60-Day Injured List". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  22. ^ "MLB Gameday: Mets 16, Braves 4 Final Score (04/11/2024)". MLB.com. April 11, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  23. ^ Salvatore, Brian (April 11, 2024). "Bats bash the Braves". Amazin' Avenue. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  24. ^ "Mets Claim Michael Tonkin, Designate Tyler Jay". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved April 17, 2024.
  25. ^ "Mets Outright Tyler Jay". MLB Trade Rumors. April 19, 2024. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  26. ^ "Mets Select Matt Festa, Tyler Jay; Designate Duke Ellis". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  27. ^ Mets call up Jose Butto, option Tyler Jay to Triple-A Syracuse, Yahoo Sports, July 2, 2024
  28. ^ "Mets Claim Alex Young, Designate Tyler Jay". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  29. ^ "Brewers Acquire Tyler Jay From Mets". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved July 21, 2024.
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