Pirates officially lose Endy Rodriguez to another injury, make unexpected roster move

The Pittsburgh Pirates decided to bring two new faces to the dugout ahead of Saturday's game against the Phillies. Brett Sullivan and Isaac Mattson were both called up in corresponding moves after Endy Rodriguez hit the injured list and Joey Wentz got DFA'd.

Rodriguez was feeling right elbow discomfort after throwing a ball back to Bailey Falter on Friday night. This injury for Rodriguez is quite concerning because it is the same elbow he got surgery on prior to the 2024 season. If it happens to be related to that, he could be out for a long period of time.

The young switch-hitting catcher cannot seem to catch a break with injuries, as this is now the second time he's been placed on the IL this season. Rodriguez has not been able to find a groove at the plate either, posting a 38 wRC+ with a .496 OPS.

With Joey Bart still out with a concussion, the Pirates decided to bring up Brett Sullivan from Triple-A. He was acquired from the Padres earlier in the season for Bryce Johnson. Since the Pirates traded for him, Sullivan has batted .211 with an extremely poor 49 wRC+. The good news? He has a low 13.2% strikeout rate. But that's it. He's an average defender behind the plate, so it's surprising the Pirates didn't promote Abrahan Gutierrez, who is better on both sides of the ball.

Pirates place Endy Rodriguez on IL, replace him with Brett Sullivan; Joey Wentz DFA'd and Isaac Mattson recalled

Joey Wentz was DFA'd to make room on the 40-man for Sullivan. Losing Wentz impacts the depth to left-handed pitching group. He did find some success as a low-leverage reliever, but the Pirates had to move on as he was out of minor league options. Wentz posted a 4.15 ERA with a 3.96 FIP across 26 innings. Hopefully he clears waivers and gets outrighted to Triple-A, but with his decent numbers, that feels unlikely. Someone's bound to scoop him up.

Isaac Mattson will take Wentz' place in the bullpen. Mattson should not have been sent down at all as Tanner Rainey was kept up instead recently. Fortunately, he found his way back up to Pittsburgh. In three outings this season, Mattson allowed just one earned run and two baserunners while striking out four.

Losing Wentz was very unexpected, but someone had to go to get a backup catcher activated. Mattson should be a solid replacement until Dauri Moreta is ready to come back up. Otherwise, Pirates fans will see if Sullivan can serve as a decent backup as well until Bart is healthy again.