Which Pittsburgh Pirates are likely to start the season on the 60-Day Injured List?
Spring training begins on Wednesday but it also marks the first day that clubs can place injured players from their 40-man roster on the 60-day injured list.
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With spring training underway for the Pittsburgh Pirates, they will be facing 60-day injured list decisions with at least four players before the season begins
Spring training is officially open for the Pittsburgh Pirates and everyone else across Major League Baseball. With camps opening, clubs around the league can start tinkering with their players and injured lists.
Wednesday is expected to be a busy day across Major League Baseball as organizations look to open up key depth roster spots on their 40-man roster by placing some injured players on the 60-day injured list.
Unlike when being added to the 10-day injured list or 15-day injured list, players who are added to the 60-day injured list are effectively removed from their team's 40-man roster, allowing that roster spot to be used by another player.
With plenty of notable free agents remaining on the market, the movement of players to the 60-day IL is expected to help cause a chain reaction in the free agent market as well with plenty of opportunities expected to open up.
Unfortunately for the Pirates, several players on their 40-man roster will likely be added to the 60-day injured list in short order on Wednesday or in the coming days/weeks. Below, Rum Bunter takes a look at which Pirates will likely begin or spend their entire 2024 season on the 60-day IL.
Catcher Endy Rodriguez
In mid-December, the unfortunate news that Endy Rodriguez would miss the entirety of the 2024 season after undergoing elbow reconstruction surgery and a repair of his flexor tendon. The Pirates will officially move him to the 60-day injured list, possibly as soon as Wednesday to make room on the 40-man roster for veteran free agent addition Yasmani Grandal.
At the time of his surgery it was expected that Rodriguez would be out 10-12 months, all but ending his 2024 season.
In his debut season in 2023, Rodriguez played in 57 games for the Pirates, hitting .220/.284/.328 with 12 extra base hits including three home runs and 19 RBI across 204 plate appearances.
2024 OUTLOOK: OUT FOR SEASON
SP Johan Oviedo
Like Rodriguez, right handed starter Johan Oviedo underwent elbow surgery this offseason and in result will miss the entirety of the 2024 season.
The news of Oviedo's surgery was a tough blow for the Pirates as the 25-year old flashed at times in 2023, posting a 4.31 ERA across 177.2 innings pitched while making 32 starts. The Pirates were counting on the Cuban right hander to be a key piece of their rotation in 2024 and one of their top innings eaters in the process. Losing Oviedo undoubtedly impacted the offseason plans of the Pirates, and, with the team still pursuing starting pitching help, continues to impact them.
Like Rodriguez, Oviedo will officially be moved to the 60-day injured list either on Wednesday or shortly after.
2024 OUTLOOK: OUT FOR SEASON
SP JT Brubaker
After missing the entirety of the 2023 season due to Tommy John surgery, Brubaker could be returning to the Pirates rotation in 2024 as Noah Wright discussed yesterday.
The 30-year old Brubaker had his Tommy John surgery performed last April, making him a prime candidate to start the season on the 60-day injured list. If all progresses well for Brubaker could begin ramping up sometime this summer before potentially making a return to Pittsburgh in July or August.
In his career, Brubaker has made 63 appearances including 61 starts for the Pirates, posting a 9-28 record with a 4.99 ERA and 4.43 FIP. He has also has a career 22.8% strikeout rate and an 8.4% walk rate.
2024 OUTLOOK: JUNE OR JULY RETURN
SP Mike Burrows
A similar story to that of JT Brubaker, Mike Burrows underwent Tommy John surgery in late April. While a return later in the season could be in the cards, it seems likely that the Pirates will either place Burrows on the 60-day injured list or option him to Triple-A to start the season. The latter could be the more likely result in order to avoid starting his service time clock.
Burrows was set to enter the 2023 season as one of the Pirates top 10 prospects, being ranked by MLB Pipeline as the organization's No. 8 prospect.
Prior to last season, Burrows posted a 9-11 overall record and 3.34 ERA in 54 games and 51 starts across six different levels.
Burrows began his career in the Pirates organization in 2018 in rookie ball before playing in the now defunct short-season league in 2019. After missing the entire 2020 season due to the cancellation of the minor league season due to COVID, Burrows made the jump to High-A in 2021 before playing in Double-A and Triple-A in 2022. He started last season with Triple-A Indianapolis, making two starts before being shut down for the year.
Despite missing two full seasons now, Burrows is still just 24 years old so it wouldn't be surprising if the Pirates take things a little bit slower with the former 11th round pick compared to the potential timeline they may have for Brubaker.
2024 OUTLOOK: JULY OR AUGUST RETURN
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