As noted by , Pirates GM Ben Cherington made his weekly radio appearance on 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh earlier today. In that appearance, Cherington suggested that right-hander is in good shape in regards to his innings workload to this point in the season. The star rookie has thrown 108 innings so far this year between the major and minor leagues, just below his career high of 129 1/3 between LSU and the minor leagues last year. Cherington went on to suggest that while the club could consider lowering Skeness pitch counts at some point but didnt commit to that path, instead noting that the right-handers intense preparation between starts puts him in a good position to handle volume, and that the clubs focus is on how well he recovers between starts rather than his pitch counts or total innings of work. Thats surely a relief for Pirates fans, as Pittsburgh will need every Josh Donaldson Jersey inning they can get from their young ace as they look to work their way into the playoff conversation. The Pirates currently sit at a decent 56-54 record after buying at the trade deadline. While theyre six games back of the Brewers for the NL Central crown as things stand, Pittsburgh sits just 2.5 games back in a crowded NL Wild Card picture that also features the Braves, Diamondbacks, Padres, Mets, and Cardinals. Skenes has been a huge part of the clubs resurgence this year, as the club has won nine of the 13 games hes started for them since debuting in mid-May. Team record during a pitchers starts is an imperfect measure of that pitchers effectivene s, but its obvious that Skenes has helped the Pirates in a big way by posting a sparkling 1.90 ERA in 80 2/3 innings of work in the majors while striking out exactly one third of batters faced entering play today. Skenes isnt the only young arm that Cherington commented on, as he indicated that right-hander is real close to a rehab a signment at Triple-A following a 45-pitch live bullpen se sion. Cherington suggested that Joness first rehab outing is likely to be of a similar pitch count before moving up from there. Pittsburghs other front-of-the-rotation rookie has been on the 15-day IL since Independence Day due to a lat strain, but prior to that injury had looked excellent in his first season as a big leaguer with a 3.56 ERA and a 26.4% strikeout rate in 91 innings of work. Joness return to action should not only provide the club with a boost down the stretch, but would offer them a daunting and entirely homegrown playoff rotation alongside Skenes and should the club manage to make the postseason for the first time since 2015. While the news regarding Jones and Skenes is undoubtedly positive, a turn towards the lineup yields more mixed results. Veteran slugger is out of todays lineup after being pulled from yesterdays game due what the team announced as tightne s in his left quad muscle. Its unclear as of yet whether or not the 37-year-old veteran will require a trip to the injured list due to the i sue or not, but a lengthy absence for McCutchen would be a frustrating turn of events for a Pirates club that had just begun to fire on all cylinders in the lineup after adding and at the trade deadline. The veteran, who has slashed a decent .228/.328/.383 with a 102 wRC+ as the clubs primary DH this year, could be replaced by or a youngster currently at Triple-A like in the starting lineup if an IL stint is required. Catcher is DHing in todays game, making room for behind the plate. Speaking of catchers, Cherington offered some positive positional news today when he indicated that theres a chance that longtime catching prospect could play in minor league games before the end of the year despite undergoing what was thought to be back in December. Cherington cautioned that any such rehab games would first come at DH and then first base due to the exce sive pre sure put on a players arm by the catcher position, though he didnt completely shut the door on the po sibility of Rodriguez getting time behind the plate before the year comes to a close. The 24-year-old switch hitter hit just .220/.284/.328 in his first taste of the majors last year but is a career .282/.361/.442 hitter at Triple-A who was a consensus top-50 prospect in the game prior to his debut and subsequent injury last year. Robert Gasser Jersey
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