Quad injury forces Cervelli to miss rest of season

The left quadriceps injury Francisco Cervelli suffered last month has officially ended his season.

Clint Hurdle told reporters prior to Monday's first pitch against the Brewers at PNC Park that Cervelli, who was placed on the 10-day disabled list on Aug. 26, will not recover in time to play during the Pirates' final 12 games.



The decision was made this afternoon in a meeting that included Hurdle, Cervelli, Neal Huntington and head athletic trainer Todd Tomczyk. Cervelli was not available for comment Monday afternoon.

"We mapped out the calendar and we just came to the conclusion that we ran out of days for us to feasibly, realistically push to continue to play," Hurdle said. "He hasn’t blocked balls, he hasn’t run bases. He’s worked as hard as he can. He’s poured everything he can into it to get to where he is today. ... The reality of it is we’ve run out of time."

Cervelli had four stints on the disabled list, including twice for a concussion in June, to limit him to only 81 games in his third season with the Pirates.

The 31-year-old catcher batted .249/.342/.370 with five home runs and 31 RBI this season. He was limited to 101 games in 2016 because of surgery to remove a fractured hamate bone and Cervelli told reporters earlier this season that the effects of that injury affected him at the plate in 2017.

Cervelli suffered the quad injury during the third inning of a 9-5 loss to the Reds in Cincinnati on August 25 — one day after he returned from a 14-day stint on the disabled list stemming from left wrist inflammation.

The quad injury occurred while Cervelli scored from second base on this play:



He is owed $22 million over the next two seasons after signing a three-year extension with the Pirates last May. With him out for the season, Hurdle plans to give Elias Diaz the bulk of the starts.

Hurdle wants to see Diaz continue to improve behind the plate, while also starting Cervelli's offseason recovery plan.

"I think it’s hard, but at the same time he understands," Hurdle said of Cervelli. "He knows how much he’s put into this to try to fight to get back. The risk versus reward, at this point in time, if he could play in two days, three days, I think it would be worth it to get five games in but anything less than that we need to get him into position now to have a really good recovery this offseason. He’s in a good place and frame of mind, though."