2:40pm: The Pirates have made it official, reinstating Gonzales and designating Honeywell for project. In addition they reinstated nearer David Bednar from the IL and optioned right-hander Ryder Ryan.
2:15pm: Left-hander Marco Gonzales goes to start out immediately’s recreation for the Pirates, with Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Submit-Gazette amongst these to relay the information on X. He’s at present on the 60-day injured record and can subsequently have to be reinstated to the 40-man roster, nevertheless it was reported earlier that righty Brent Honeywell Jr. is to be designated for project. Until there are different strikes concerned, it appears it is going to be a easy swap of Gonzales taking Honeywell’s spot.
Gonzales, 32, was acquired from Atlanta within the offseason and began the season in Pittsburgh’s rotation. He made 4 begins with a 2.65 earned run common earlier than touchdown on the injured record in mid-April with a forearm pressure. He now returns after lacking roughly three months of the season.
The lefty has typically been a stable however not overwhelming starter over his profession. In 910 profession innings, he has a 4.10 ERA however with a subpar strikeout price of 17.6%. At his greatest, he limits harm even when he doesn’t miss bats. In 2019, he logged over 200 innings with Seattle with a 3.99 ERA. He solely punched out 17% of opponents however Statcast thought-about his barrel price to be within the 87th percentile of certified pitchers.
The Bucs may have some selections to make about how they form their rotation for the remainder of the yr. Gonzales and Martín Pérez had been introduced aboard within the winter to ideally function veteran anchors in a considerably inexperienced group however neither has been capable of obtain that up to now. As talked about, Gonzales took the ball simply 4 instances earlier than a prolonged IL stint whereas Pérez additionally missed a while attributable to harm and has 14 begins with an ERA of 5.15.
In the long run, Pittsburgh appears to be effectively arrange within the rotation with a core three of Paul Skenes, Jared Jones and Mitch Keller. Skenes has debuted this yr and dominated with a 1.90 ERA by means of 11 begins, getting named the Nationwide League starter for the All-Star recreation. Jones hasn’t been fairly that dominant however a 3.56 ERA by means of 16 begins continues to be fairly an achievement for a rookie. Keller is in his sixth season and has a 3.40 ERA and is signed by means of 2028.
Jones is at present on the injured record and gained’t be obtainable for just a few weeks, however the Bucs have Gonzales, Pérez, Skenes and Keller, in addition to Quinn Priester and Luis Ortiz. The 23-year-old Priester isn’t producing as a lot hype as Skenes or Jones however he has a 4.30 ERA for the Bucs this yr. The 25-year-old Ortiz began the yr within the bullpen has pitched so effectively that he’s carved out a beginning gig for himself. He has a 2.95 ERA on the yr with 5 of his final six outings being 4 innings or longer. Two of his final three appearances have been six-inning begins with just one earned run allowed whole over these two begins.
That offers Pittsburgh six potential starters for now and 7 when Jones comes again. Bailey Falter can also be on the IL with left triceps tendinitis, although it’s unclear when he’ll be again. He was additionally having a very good season earlier than the IL stint, with a 4.08 ERA in 17 begins.
The Bucs are at present 45-48 on the yr. Regardless of that pretty unimpressive file, they’re solely 2.5 video games out of a playoff spot in a comparatively weak Nationwide League Wild Card race and must work out the way to juggle these completely different rotation selections. Priester has choices and should find yourself within the minors despite his respectable outcomes. Ortiz may find yourself again within the bullpen and Pérez additionally has some aid work on his résumé.
With all these beginning choices, it’s potential the Bucs look to make somebody obtainable even when they’re not really promoting on the deadline. For instance, the Rays just lately welcome Shane Baz again from his Tommy John layoff and had been capable of commerce Aaron Civale to the Brewers with out considerably downgrading their rotation, getting a prospect again in return. Many groups are searching for pitching however there are few clearcut sellers, so maybe there can be curiosity in a veteran like Pérez or Gonzales, permitting the Bucs to make use of their pile of starters so as to add a place participant or a reliever with out really harming their possibilities in 2024.
Whether or not a commerce comes collectively or not, the Pittsburgh rotation appears to have lots of long-term potential between Skenes, Jones, Keller, Priester, Falter and Ortiz, in addition to prospects corresponding to Braxton Ashcraft. There’s additionally Johan Oviedo, who will miss this season attributable to Tommy John surgical procedure however ought to be again subsequent yr. Everybody in that group is managed by means of 2027 or longer.