Pirates 1B expected to miss eight weeks

The Pirates placed first baseman Ji-Man Choi on the 10-day injured list due to a strained left Achilles tendon earlier this week, but he’ll face a considerably lengthier absence than that 10-day minimum. Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk tells reporters that Choi is expected to miss the next eight weeks of action (Twitter links via Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). Tomczyk also provided discouraging updates on lefties Jarlin Garcia and Rob Zastryzny. The former is still incapable of gripping a ball, while the latter is likely out for seven to 10 weeks himself after being diagnosed with ulnar neuritis.

Choi, 32 next month, was acquired from the Rays in a November trade that sent minor league righty Jack Hartman the other way. Pittsburgh knew at the time that he’d need to undergo a relatively minor elbow procedure but expected him to be ready for the 2023 season. That indeed proved to be the case, but Choi has gotten out to a slow start, going just 4-for-32 with an uncharacteristic 15 strikeouts and no walks. For a hitter who came into the season with a 13.4% walk rate and 25.6% strikeout rate, it’s an odd trend even in a small sample of plate appearances. To Choi’s credit, two of his hits did clear the fence for home runs.

An eight-week timeline will put Choi on the shelf into at least mid-June and make him a candidate for transfer to the 60-day injured list, should the Pirates need to open a 40-man roster spot at any point in the near future. Veteran Carlos Santana can handle the lion’s share of work at first base while Choi misses time, freeing the DH spot up for fan favorite Andrew McCutchen. Giving Cutch more time at DH could keep his legs fresher and give the Pirates the opportunity to trot out a superior defensive group in the outfield, where Bryan Reynolds, Jack Suwinski, Canaan Smith-Njigba and Connor Joe are among the current options. Joe also has experience at first base, if the Pirates want to give Santana some DH time.

Turning to the bullpen updates, things are similarly unfortunate. Garcia was signed as a free agent in the offseason, inking a one-year, $2.5M contract with an option for a second season. The 30-year-old southpaw, however, exited an early spring start due to tightness in his left arm, and the Pirates announced not long after that he’d be shut down for “several weeks.” That shutdown period grew once he was diagnosed with a nerve issue near his biceps and prescribed an additional four to five weeks without throwing. Pittsburgh transferred him to the 60-day IL earlier this month.

While it was already know that Garcia would be in for a lengthy absence, this latest update is nonetheless discouraging, as it’s now been four and a half weeks since the team announced that five-week shutdown. Given that he’s still unable to grip a ball, it seems his no-throw period will extend further, though Tomczyk did not provide a specific timetable or divulge whether any additional treatment options are under consideration.

As for Zastryzny, he returned the majors in 2022 after a three-year absence and tossed four innings between the Mets and Angels. Pittsburgh inked him to a minor league deal over the winter, and he parlayed a strong spring performance into the first Opening Day roster of his career at age 31.

Unfortunately, that impressive spring showing — 7 1/3 scoreless innings, 10 strikeouts, one walk — has given way to quick struggles early in the season. He appeared in seven games and yielded five runs on six hits and five walks (one intentional) in 5 2/3 innings before hitting the injured list. The diagnosis of ulnar neuritis is the same as the one that just led to Rays southpaw Jeffrey Springs’ Tommy John surgery, though the injury has a wide breadth of possible outcomes.

Ulnar neuritis, by its most simple definition, is inflammation of the ulnar nerve. Over the past several years we’ve seen everything from minimal IL stints (Jordan Romano) to ulnar nerve transposition surgery (Michael Fulmer) to Springs’ more recent Tommy John surgery. As with many injuries, each case is unique and comes with its own outlook. In Zastryzny’s case, there’s been no indication to this point that he’ll require surgery, but a prolonged absence is in store. Like Choi, he’ll be a 60-day IL candidate whenever the Pirates need a 40-man roster spot.

With both Garcia and Zastryzny out for extended periods of time, the only lefty in the Pittsburgh bullpen is Rule 5 pick Jose Hernandez. The Buccos don’t have any minor league lefties on the 40-man roster, but former big leaguers Caleb Smith, Daniel Zamora and Angel Perdomo are all in Triple-A. It also wouldn’t be a surprise to see Pittsburgh keep an eye out for some depth via waivers; the Giants just designated Sam Long for assignment Wednesday morning, for instance, and he’d be one speculative option. If not him, other southpaws will surely be made available via DFA in the coming weeks.