Canadian Zastryzny signs with Mets

Left-hander Rob Zastryzny (Edmonton, Alta.) has signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets. Photo: Wikipedia

January 4, 2021

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

Canadian left-hander Rob Zastryzny (Edmonton, Alta.) has signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets.

The Mets announced the deal on December 1.

A second-round pick of the Chicago Cubs in 2013, Zastryzny posted a 3.68 ERA in 24 relief appearances for the triple-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp in the Miami Marlins’ organization in 2021. He had 41 strikeouts in 29 2/3 innings.

Prior to that, the 29-year-old southpaw spent most of the pandemic shortened 2020 campaign at the Baltimore Orioles’ Alternate Training site, but did not get into a big league game.

From 2016 to 2018, Zastryzny recorded a 4.41 ERA in 18 relief appearances with the Chicago Cubs and earned a World Series ring in 2016.

In all in parts of eight minor league campaigns, the Canadian southpaw has registered a 4.72 ERA in 171 appearances.

He also toed the rubber for Canada at the WSBC Premier12 tournament in November 2019.

Zastryzny was born in Edmonton, Alta., but he attended Calallen High School in Corpus Christi, Tex. and later pitched at the University of Missouri Columbia.