Jason Delay
Jason Thomas Delay (born March 7, 1995) is an American professional baseball catcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022.
Jason Delay | |
---|---|
Pittsburgh Pirates – No. 55 | |
Catcher | |
Born: Plano, Texas, U.S. | March 7, 1995|
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
MLB debut | |
June 14, 2022, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
MLB statistics (through 2023 season) | |
Batting average | .233 |
Home runs | 2 |
Runs batted in | 29 |
Teams | |
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Amateur career
Delay attended Northview High School in Johns Creek, Georgia, and Vanderbilt University, where he played college baseball for the Vanderbilt Commodores.[1] He was a member of the 2014 College World Series champions, and played in the 2015 College World Series, which Vanderbilt lost.[2] In 2015, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Bourne Braves of the Cape Cod Baseball League, and returned to the league in 2016 with the Cotuit Kettleers.[3][4]
Professional career
The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Delay in the fourth round of the 2017 MLB draft.[5] He signed with the Pirates for a $100,000 signing bonus.[6]
Delay began the 2022 season with the Indianapolis Indians.
In June 2022, Delay had decided he would retire from professional baseball during Indianapolis's upcoming trip to play the Gwinnett Stripers, near his hometown in Johns Creek, Georgia.[7][8]
The Pirates promoted him to the major leagues on June 13, 2022.[9] He made his major league debut on June 14 in the first game of a double header against the St. Louis Cardinals.[10] After going 0-for-2 with a walk in his debut, the Pirates optioned him back to Triple-A Indianapolis Indians.[11] On July 4, Delay recorded his first career hit, an RBI double off of Cincinnati Reds starter Mike Minor.[12] On July 22, Delay hit his first career home run, a solo shot off of Miami Marlins starter Braxton Garrett.[13] Delay made 57 appearances for the Pirates in his rookie campaign, hitting .213/.265/.271 with one home run and 11 RBI. He was outrighted off the roster on November 10.
On March 28, 2023, the Pirates announced that Delay had made the Opening Day roster as the backup catcher behind Austin Hedges.[14] He had his contract selected on March 30.[15]
References
- "Northview's Delay to play ball for Vanderbilt". Appen Media.
- Krajisnik, Stefan. "Indianapolis minor league teammates cherish College World Series memories, set for duel". The Indianapolis Star.
- "#27 Jason Delay (2015)". pointstreak.com. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
- "#27 Jason Delay (2016)". pointstreak.com. Retrieved June 14, 2022.
- Sparks, Adam. "Vanderbilt's Will Toffey, Jason Delay drafted in fourth round". The Tennessean.
- Sparks, Adam. "Vanderbilt players' signing bonuses and minor league debuts". The Tennessean.
- "Jason Delay almost left baseball behind. It's a good thing he didn't". MLB.com.
- "1 year after nearly retiring, Delay thriving". MLB.com.
- "Pirates Select Jason Delay, Recall Canaan Smith-Njigba". MLB Trade Rumors.
- "Jason Delay, Canaan Smith-Njigba make MLB debuts on same day in St. Louis".
- "Pirates' Jason Delay: Quick return to minors". www.cbssports.com. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
- "Jason Delay's 1st career hit, RBI | 07/07/2022". MLB.com.
- "Jason Delay's First Career Homer Capitalizes Strong Start To Pirates Career". pittsburghbaseballnow.com. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- "Pirates' Jason Delay: To open as backup catcher". cbssports.com. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
- "Pirates Designate Ryan Vilade For Assignment". MLB Trade Rumors.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet