Peter J. Strzelecki ( ; born October 24, 1994) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

in the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

organization. He has previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

, and

Cleveland Guardians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. Since , the team has played its home gam ...

Career

Amateur career

Strzelecki graduated from Santaluces Community High School in

Lantana, Florida Lantana is a town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is north from Fort Lauderdale and north of Miami. This town is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. Its population was 11,504 at the 2020 United States censu ...

. He attended Palm Beach State College, where he played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

in 2014 and 2015. He transferred to the

University of South Florida The University of South Florida (USF) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, Tampa, Florida, United States, and other campuses in St. Petersburg, Florida, St. Petersburg and Sarasota, ...

to play for the

South Florida Bulls The South Florida Bulls (also known as the USF Bulls) are the athletic teams that represent the University of South Florida. USF competes in NCAA Division I and is a member of the American Athletic Conference for all sports besides sailing, a n ...

Milwaukee Brewers

The

signed Strzelecki as an undrafted

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

after the

2018 Major League Baseball draft The 2018 Major League Baseball draft began on June 4, 2018. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was determined based on the reverse order of the 2017 MLB season final standings. In addition, compensation pi ...

. In his first professional season, he played for the Arizona League Brewers and the

Helena Brewers The Helena Brewers were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pioneer League located in Helena, Montana, from 1978 to 2018. The team played their home games at Kindrick Legion Field, which was built in 1939. They were affiliated with the Milwaukee ...

while pitching to a cumulative 5.52

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number ...

(ERA) in innings pitched. He played for the

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Grand Chute, Wisconsin, a town on the outskirts of Appleton in the Fox Cities, and are nam ...

and the

Carolina Mudcats The Carolina Mudcats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Carolina League and the Single-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Zebulon, North Carolina, a suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina, Raleigh, and play their home games ...

in 2019 and recorded a 3.05 ERA in 59 innings. He did not play a minor league game in 2020 as the season was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Returning for the 2021 minor league season, he pitched for the

Biloxi Shuckers The Biloxi Shuckers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Southern League (1964–present), Southern League and the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Biloxi, Mississippi, and are named in ref ...

and the

Nashville Sounds The Nashville Sounds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, and are named for the ci ...

. Between the two teams, he pitched in 40 games and went 0–2 with a 3.46 ERA. He began the 2022 season with Nashville before having his contract selected to the major league roster by the Brewers on May 30, 2022. He made his MLB debut on June 2. On October 4, Strzelecki earned his first career save after tossing a scoreless ninth inning in a game against the

Arizona Diamondbacks

On August 1, 2023, Strzelecki was traded to the

in exchange for pitcher Andrew Chafin. He made one appearance for the Diamondbacks down the stretch, pitching a scoreless innings against the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

. Strzelecki was optioned to the Triple–A

Reno Aces The Reno Aces are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Reno, Nevada, and play their home games at Greater Nevada Field, w ...

to begin the 2024 season. However, he was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

by the team on March 25 following the promotion of Tucker Barnhart.

Cleveland Guardians

On March 28, 2024, Strzelecki was traded to the

in exchange for cash considerations. In 10 appearances for the Guardians, he recorded a 2.31 ERA with 9 strikeouts across innings pitched. Strzelecki was designated for assignment by Cleveland on November 19.

Pittsburgh Pirates

On November 22, 2024, the Guardians traded Strzelecki to the

in exchange for cash considerations. On March 27, 2025, Strzelecki was designated for assignment by the Pirates. He cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Triple-A

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory ...

on March 29.

Personal life

Strzelecki grew up in

Boynton Beach, Florida Boynton Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is situated about north of Miami. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded a population of 80,380. Boynton Beach is located in the Mi ...

with two brothers and one sister. He started playing baseball at a young age and later on became a dual sport athlete playing high school basketball and football as well. While Strzelecki was pitching at South Florida, his father, Kevin, died of a heart attack at age 52.

References

External links

South Florida Bulls bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Strzelecki, Peter 1994 births Living people Arizona Diamondbacks players Arizona League Brewers players Baseball players from Queens, New York Biloxi Shuckers players 21st-century American sportsmen Carolina Mudcats players Cleveland Guardians players Columbus Clippers players Helena Brewers players Indianapolis Indians players Major League Baseball pitchers Milwaukee Brewers players Nashville Sounds players Palm Beach State Panthers baseball players Reno Aces players South Florida Bulls baseball players Wisconsin Timber Rattlers players