Young Pirates righty Jones (right elbow discomfort) done pitching this spring
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PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Jared Jones will not pitch again this Spring Training after reporting elbow discomfort to the Pirates after his most recent bullpen session Sunday.
The Pirates are still learning about the severity of Jones' injury. They¡¯ve done imaging and are waiting on a second opinion, per senior director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk, so there is no official prognosis or estimate of when he can start throwing again.
¡°This is normal standard protocol,¡± Tomczyk said. ¡°When any pitcher comes to the medical staff with a concern of not recovering well, we want to be thorough, we want to be comprehensive. I don¡¯t want to be an alarmist at this point in time. I want to emphasize that we are still learning as much as we possibly can as we¡¯ve done over the years, as you¡¯ve seen. It¡¯s a collaborative approach with [the] player, with second opinions, with staff physicians.
¡°We¡¯re still learning. If that¡¯s the take-home message that I do share, it¡¯s that we are still learning.¡±
The hope is the Pirates will have either a resolution or know what the next steps are in the coming days, but right now, they¡¯re in a holding pattern waiting to see what the imaging shows and what the second opinion brings.
"He's not going to make his next start in Spring Training. That's for sure,¡± manager Derek Shelton said. ¡°I think with that being said, we're going to have to look at what happens going into the season."
Losing Jones for an extended period of time would obviously be a massive blow to the Pirates¡¯ rotation. Jones is one-third of the team¡¯s big three (alongside Paul Skenes and Mitch Keller) and is coming off of a solid rookie campaign, when he went 6-8 with a 4.14 ERA and 132 strikeouts over 121 2/3 innings. He missed most of July and August with a right lat strain.
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Jones also had looked strong this spring, striking out 17 over 12 innings while flashing a new two-seam fastball that bolstered his pitch mix.
The Pirates¡¯ rotation depth already took a hit this spring, when Johan Oviedo had to be shut down with a right lat injury as he worked back from Tommy John surgery, landing him on the 60-day injured list. Bailey Falter was scratched from a start last Thursday against the Twins in Fort Myers with general soreness, so Jones made the start rather than throwing his scheduled sim game. Falter came out of his last start Monday feeling good.
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The team has some high-level pitching prospects in the system who are on the verge of the Majors, including Thomas Harrington, who is still in Major League camp and is ranked as the No. 79 prospect in the game according to MLB Pipeline. Harrington started for the Pirates on Tuesday, which would have been Jones¡¯ normal spot in the rotation after having last pitched Thursday in Fort Myers. Relievers Carmen Mlodzinski and Caleb Ferguson have also gotten a look as starters this spring.
But few pitchers can match the results, stuff or intensity that Jones brings to the staff. For now, all Jones and the Pirates can do is wait.