BRADENTON, Fla. — Joe Musgrove, accompanied by the Houston Astros teammates he won the World Series with in October, toured the White House and met President Donald Trump on Monday afternoon.
Musgrove, the 25-year-old starting pitcher acquired by the Pirates from the Astros in the Gerrit Cole trade, spent time in the Oval Office, learned the history of the building, walked through the West Wing and did his best to discover trap doors.
For Musgrove, the visit and championship celebration was the final chapter of his time with the Astros. After all, there's little room for nostalgia now that he's expected to make his first spring training start for the Pirates on Thursday against the Yankees in Tampa.
"It was a weird feeling leaving, realizing that’s the final time I’ll see anyone for a little while," Musgrove said Wednesday morning at LECOM Park. "I’m sure I’ll cross paths with those guys down the line in baseball, but to play on that same team will never be the same. Teams change every year, whether it’s one person or a handful. That team I was on was pretty special. It was nice to get to spend one last time with everybody."
Musgrove was a key cog for the World Series champions, despite having a 6.12 ERA in 15 starts for the Astros last season. He was moved to the bullpen in July and became a shutdown late-inning reliever, recording a 1.44 ERA with 31 strikeouts and only five walks in 31 1/3 innings.
The former first-round draft pick allowed six earned runs in 6 2/3 innings during the postseason, pitching four times in the World Series. However, he was one of four players traded to the Pirates in January in exchange for Cole, and he's heading back to the starting rotation.
But Musgrove's first start with the Pirates was delayed after he experienced right shoulder discomfort prior to his first scheduled live batting practice last month. As a "precautionary" move, the training staff chose to shelve Musgrove, allowing his shoulder enough rest in hopes he'd be ready for the start of the season.
An ultrasound did not show any structural damage, and he resumed throwing shortly after the discomfort occurred. He pitched two innings in an intrasquad game last Friday, throwing 31 pitches in his final prep for his first start. Now, Musgrove is expected to pitch three innings against the Yankees, as the Pirates try to get him stretched out for the start of the season.
"I’ve been trying not to sit around and be bitter or anything more than taking the time to prepare extra," Musgrove said. "I’ve had a lot of time to get my arm in shape with the right amount of rest and stuff, so I’ve taken advantage of that and taken the rest for what it is. My body feels pretty good right now, so hopefully we can keep progressing."
INJURY UPDATES
• Right-handed relief pitcher A.J. Schugel resumed playing catch Wednesday, according to Todd Tomzcyk, the Pirates' director of sports medicine. Schugel, who is out of minor-league options, suffered a shoulder injury that forced him from a game against the Tigers on Feb. 25.
Schugel had a 1.40 WHIP in 32 innings for the Pirates last season.
• Bo Schultz, a 32-year-old relief pitcher signed as a minor-league free agent, has advanced to the simulated game portion of his Tommy John rehab. Tomzcyk said Schultz is on track to possibly return to game action at the end of the month.
• Nick Burdi, a 24-year-old right-handed reliever acquired from the Phillies in a trade after the Rule 5 draft in December, is being given what Tomzcyk called a 5-7 day "spring break" during his rehab from Tommy John.
A second-round pick of the Twins in 2014, Burdi was once viewed by evaluators as a potential major-league closer. Entering the 2016 season, he was ranked by Baseball America as the 10th-best prospect in the Twins’ organization, but he has been limited by injuries since.
Burdi went 2-0 in 17 innings with one save, a 0.53 ERA, 20 strikeouts and a .161 batting average against last season with Double-A Chattanooga before suffering the elbow injury. He's currently on track to return sometime late this season, possibly in August.
• Tyler Glasnow, who was scratched from his start Monday because of flu-like symptoms, is expected to throw a side session Thursday in preparation for his next start.
• Tomzcyk told reporters that Daniel Nava, who underwent back surgery late last month, is still on track to return in 10-12 weeks and the expectation is Nava will not have any lingering issues after the procedure.
"Unfortunately, it got to that point where he wasn't going to be able to function in life, let alone as a baseball player, so we identified it, got the surgery and are moving forward," Tomzcyk said.
