Tim Mayza most likely had a pretty good view of the Philadelphia Phillies’ on-field action Thursday.

He just didn’t get to participate in the game.

As Cristopher Sánchez struck out 10 and tossed three-hit ball over six shutout innings in his first start since he signed a $104 million contract extension, Mayza, a Millersville grad and Denver resident, was in uniform in the Philadelphia bullpen. But the left-handed reliever, 34, did not get called on to pitch in the Phillies’ eventual 5-3 win over the Texas Rangers at Citizens Bank Park.  

The game was not without its hiccups.

Home runs from Kyle Schwarber and Alec Bohm had staked the Phillies to a 5-0 lead in the game, which was also notable in that much-anticipated rookie Justin Crawford made his debut. But in the ninth, a different lefty reliever, Kyle Backhus, got the call. He promptly allowed three runs on three hits in a third of an inning. The Phillies had to call on closer Jhoan Duran to enter the game in a save situation.

But Duran restored order, and the Phillies left with the win.

Sánchez did not issue a walk over 87 pitches in his first career opening-day start and showed why the Phillies tore up his old deal before it expired and gave him a much more lucrative contract through the 2032 season. The 29-year-old left-hander won 13 games last season and finished runner-up behind Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes in NL Cy Young Award voting.

Skenes was chased in the first inning earlier Thursday by the Mets, while Sánchez never pitched into a serious jam against Texas and spoiled manager Skip Schumaker’s Texas debut — which also featured Lancaster Catholic grad Travis Jankowski’s opener as the Rangers’ first base coach.

Mayza, who had been named to the Phillies’ Opening Day roster Wednesday, joins Backhus, Jose Alvarado and Tanner Banks as the team’s available southpaw relievers. Backhus was the only one of the four to see action in Thursday’s game.

Mayza ended the 2025 season with Philadelphia, and had signed a minor league contract with the team in January. As a nonroster invitee to spring training, he went 1-1 with a 6.75 ERA in 9.1 innings, striking out 10 and walking two. He exercised an opt-out clause in his contract last week, was released, then re-signed with the Phillies a day later. Philadelphia claimed Mayza off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates last Aug. 31. He appeared in eight games for the Phillies, allowing four earned runs in 7.1 innings over eight games.

In his MLB career, Mayza is 20-9 with four saves and a 3.87 ERA in 382 games since making his debut in 2017. He has spent most of his pro career with the Toronto Blue Jays, who selected him in the 12th round of the 2013 draft. He also pitched in 15 regular-season games and three postseason games for the New York Yankees in 2024, including 1.1 scoreless innings in the World Series.

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