To add left-handed reliever Tim Mayza to their 40-man roster Monday, the Pittsburgh Pirates cleared room in the middle of their infield by designating Alika Williams for assignment.
Williams, 25, started 44 games at shortstop and 15 at second base for the Pirates over the past two seasons since being acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays for reliever Robert Stephenson in June 2023.
A 2020 first-round pick by the Rays, Williams proved to be a slick defender but didn’t provide much offense. He batted .202/.257/.271 with 11 RBIs in 83 games for the Pirates, including hitting .207 with four doubles, two triples and five RBIs in 36 games last season.
The Pirates formally signed Mayza after he agreed to a one-year, $1.15 million contract last week. The 33-year-old has a 20-9 record with a 3.88 ERA and four saves in a career spent with the Toronto Blue Jays (2017-24) and New York Yankees (2024). Mayza made a combined 50 appearances last season between the Blue Jays and Yankees.
Mayza posted a 2.67 ERA in 193 appearances between 2021-23, which ranked third behind Josh Hader (2.45) and Matt Moore (2.57) among all left-handed relievers with at least 120 innings pitched in MLB in that span. In 2023, Mayza made a career-high 69 appearances and posted the third-lowest ERA (1.52) among all American League relievers, behind Chris Martin (1.05) and Felix Bautista (1.48).