Editorial

Pittsburgh Pirates’ Drew Maggi Immediately Hit With Pitch Clock Violation After Waiting 13 Years To Make MLB Debut

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After 13 years in minor league baseball, Drew Maggi finally made his debut in MLB with the Pittsburgh Pirates, however, his first at-bat could have gone better. [Twitter/Screenshot/Public — @JomboyMedia]

[Twitter/Screenshot/Public — @JomboyMedia]

Andrew Powell Sports and Entertainment Blogger
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How are you gonna throw a pitch clock violation at the man?!

After more than 1,100 games in minor league baseball (13 years worth of contests to be exact), Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Drew Maggi finally made his Major League Baseball debut Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

However, the magic was dampened quickly in Maggi’s first at-bat.

Maggi went into the game in the eighth inning to pinch-hit for Andrew McCutchen, and as cool as that sounds, Maggi was hit with a pitch-clock violation while on an 0-1 count — bringing the pitch count to 0-2. On the next pitch, he hit a foul, and then took a ball on the fourth. On the fifth, Maggi swung and missed on a slider.

The 33-year-old was called up Sunday by the Pirates after star Bryan Reynolds was placed on the Bereavement List and first basemen Ji-Man Choi transferred to the 50-day injured list because of a left Achilles strain. (RELATED: NJ Little League Now Forcing Parents Who Confront Umpires To Suit Up Before They’re Allowed To Come Back To Watch)

Maggi was drafted in the 2010 MLB Draft by Pittsburgh in the 15th round, after four years in the Pirates’ farm system from 2010-2014. After that, Maggi took a tour around the minors, playing with teams affiliated with the Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels, Philadelphia Phillies, Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Guardians before ultimately coming back to Pittsburgh’s farm in 2022.

Such a cool story. A cool, cool story — well, except for that whole pitch clock violation thing.