Nearly 13 years after Drew Maggi was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates, the team promoted the infielder to the major leagues for Sunday’s game against the visiting Cincinnati Reds.
During that time, Maggi played in the minor leagues for six organizations, 13 seasons and 1,155 games without having competed in the big leagues.
“This is where it all started for me,” Maggi, who will turn 34 on May 16, told MLB.com on Sunday in Pittsburgh. “This whole year has been a big flashback of my younger self. I’m really happy with how it all turned out. I know that 13 years is really hard. There were a lot of ups and downs, a lot of different people, injuries, a lot of stuff happens. You never know when your days are numbered. So, being here, it feels right.”
A space was created on the Pittsburgh roster when Bryan Reynolds was placed on the bereavement list, which means the outfielder must miss a minimum of three games and no more than seven. The 40-man roster spot opened after the Pirates moved Ji Man Choi from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list because of a strained Achilles.
Maggi had spent 2010 to 2014 in Pirates’ farm system after they selected the then 21-year-old out of Arizona State in the 15th round of the 2010 June Amateur Draft.
He also played in the minors for the Los Angeles Angels (2015), Dodgers (2016-17), then-Cleveland Indians (2018), Minnesota Twins (2019, 2021) and Philadelphia Phillies (2022) before being traded back to Pittsburgh last year.
Maggi, who has played primarily shortstop, second base and third base, was hitting .194 with six hits and three RBIs over 31 at-bats in eight games for the Altoona Curve, a Pirates affiliate in the Double-A Eastern League.
For his career, Maggi has totaled 589 runs, 978 hits, 45 home runs, 354 RBIs while batting .254 with a .349 slugging percentage, .347 on-base percentage and .697 OPS.
His only other previous MLB call-up was on Sept. 18, 2021 while with Twins, who didn’t put him in a game and optioned him to Triple-A two days later.
–Field Level Media