1 week agoPittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher
Jared Jones (elbow) received an official confirmation on his injury on Wednesday. It has been announced that Jones has been diagnosed with a UCL sprain in his right elbow. That means, Jones avoided any ligament damage and won't require surgery. The plan remains for Jones to be shut down from throwing for the next six weeks. After that, Jones is going to require a few weeks to build up his arm strength and stamina. Fantasy managers should prepare to be without Jones until sometime in June.
Carmen Mlodzinski will open the season in the starting rotation, but prospects
Bubba Chandler and
Thomas Harrington are waiting in the wings if called upon as reinforcements.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: Noah Hiles
1 week agoPittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher
Jared Jones (elbow) will be shut down from throwing for the next six weeks. The good news is, Jones won't require surgery, so it doesn't appear he's in jeopardy of having a season-ending injury. The right-hander will need to build up his arm strength and stamina, so fantasy managers might not see Jones until June. Honestly, it's too early for a set timetable, but fantasy managers should prepare to be without Jones for at least a month and a half. The Pirates haven't said who will take his spot in the rotation, but
Bubba Chandler and
Thomas Harrington could possibly get the call to the big leagues early in the season.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: Noah Hiles
2 weeks agoMLB.com's Alex Stumpf writes that the Pittsburgh Pirates are still in the process of learning about the severity of right-hander
Jared Jones' right-elbow injury. They have done imaging and are now waiting on a second opinion, according to director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk. It's unclear when Jones might be able to resume throwing again. The hope is that the Pirates will either have a resolution or know what the next steps are for Jones in the coming days. What we do know is that the 23-year-old won't make his final spring training start, according to manager Derek Shelton. Jones is one of the team's big three starters alongside
Paul Skenes and
Mitch Keller, so losing him for an extended period of time would be pretty devastating. Jones looked good as a rookie but did miss most of July and August with a lat strain. If Jones is forced to open the year on the injured list,
Andrew Heaney could be his replacement.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - Alex Stumpf
2 weeks agoPittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher
Jared Jones (elbow) experienced elbow discomfort after his most recent bullpen session and will miss his final spring training start. Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reported the news. Jones pitched well in his 2024 debut, compiling a 4.14 ERA and 1.19 WHIP with a 26.2% strikeout rate in 121.2 innings (22 starts). The 23-year-old has been a popular breakout pick for the 2025 season. While it's possible the Pirates are being cautious with their young arm, elbow discomfort isn't what you want to hear. He likely won't throw for a bit and will be re-evaluated in a few days. Fantasy managers will want to continue monitoring the hard-throwing righty over the next week, as he's currently being selected inside the top 150 of drafts.
--Alex CiullaSource: Alex Stumpf
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