Luke Weaver just revealed unbelievable reason for struggles since Pirates trade

When the Pittsburgh Pirates acquired Luke Weaver from the New York Mets at the trade deadline, they thought they were adding one of the more dependable veteran relievers available.

Instead, Weaver’s first month in Pittsburgh has been surprisingly rocky. And now there is an almost inconceivable explanation for why.

Weaver revealed to DK Pittsburgh Sports’ Jose Negron that he has spent roughly the past month dealing with an extreme case of poison ivy that has left him covered in hives across much of his lower body and severely disrupted his sleep.

Apparently, Weaver picked it up during the Pirates’ trip to Miami shortly after he was traded when he brushed up against a bush. What followed was hardly a minor inconvenience. Weaver said he has been waking up repeatedly throughout the night and sometimes operating on only about five hours of broken sleep. He has also dealt with a sinus illness recently, compounding the problem.

Suddenly, his performance since joining Pittsburgh makes considerably more sense.

Luke Weaver has been battling severe poison ivy for nearly a month while adjusting to new Pirates bullpen role

After posting a 1.84 ERA across 42 appearances for the Mets, Weaver has surrendered six runs on 10 hits and four walks in 9 1/3 innings with the Pirates. Those numbers have been disappointing considering Pittsburgh acquired him specifically to strengthen its bullpen for the stretch run.

Weaver isn't using his condition to excuse those results. In fact, he continued pitching through it and never believed a stint on the injured list was necessary. But there is obviously a difference between being technically available to pitch and actually being physically capable of performing at 100%.

That distinction matters considerably for relievers, whose effectiveness can hinge on recovery, routine and being able to repeat high-intensity efforts several times per week. Manager Don Kelly acknowledged as much, pointing out that players routinely deal with personal and physical challenges fans never see.

For the Pirates, the hope now is that Weaver really is nearing the end of this ordeal. Pittsburgh acquired him expecting the version that dominated for New York, not someone attempting to navigate a playoff race while barely sleeping and feeling, as Weaver described it, like he had the “worst sunburn/itch that you've ever had.”

If his health finally cooperates, the Pirates could still get the deadline reinforcement they thought they traded for. And Weaver might finally get the opportunity to show Pittsburgh who he actually is when poison ivy isn't somehow part of the scouting report.

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