Pittsburgh Pirates: Injuries Starting to Hit Hard, SPs Struggles, & More Takeaways From Being Swept by Toronto

Chase De Jong needs to go

Chase De Jong had a career year in 2022. However, for a variety of reasons, especially his .222 batting average on balls in play, the success was never sustainable. Well, so far this season he has reverted back to the pitcher he had always been in his major league career.

Prior to landing on the injured list last month De Jong had struggled mightily this season. Sunday afternoon he made his second appearance since being activated off the IL on Friday and those struggles continued.

After dancing around raindrops to pitch a scoreless 8th inning, De Jong allowed 5 runs on a pair of home runs in hte 9th inning. On the season, De Jong now owns a 10.61 ERA and an 8.40 FIP in 9.1 innings pitched. He's allowed 13 hits, walked five batters, and has surrendered three home runs.

It could be that he's the odd man out when a starting pitcher is promoted to take Vince Vealsquez's spot in the rotation, or when Vleasquez returns. He could be jettisoned sooner and replaced by a reliever such as Colin Selby. Regardless, De Jong has no business being on this roster.