CHICAGO — Bryan Reynolds, the minor-league outfielder acquired by the Pirates in the Andrew McCutchen trade this offseason, was evaluated by the team's hand surgeon in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, per Todd Tomczyk, the Pirates' director of sports medicine.
Reynolds, 23, was placed on the minor-league disabled list Tuesday after suffering what was called a wrist sprain in a game for Double-A Altoona. The switch-hitter went 3 for 13 with two doubles, a triple and two RBIs in four games for the Curve. Tomczyk said the Pirates will have more information on the injury in the coming days.
Additionally, right-handed reliever A.J. Schugel, a member of the Pirates' 40-man roster, is expected to begin a rehab assignment with High-A Bradenton on Thursday. Schugel, 28, experienced right shoulder discomfort during his first spring training outing in February and has not pitched in a game since.
He is out of minor-league options but could be a candidate to fill a middle relief role following his rehab assignment. Schugel had a 1.40 WHIP in 32 innings for the Pirates last season.
Reynolds spent all of last season with the Giants' High-A San Jose affiliate, batting .312/.364/.462 with 10 home runs and 63 RBIs in 121 games. He was acquired in the three-player trade that sent McCutchen to the Giants in January. The Pirates' other acquisition, relief pitcher Kyle Crick, is with Triple-A Indianapolis.
Reynolds went 1 for 21 in 13 games for the Pirates in Grapefruit League play this spring, striking out seven times with no walks.
Despite the injury, Reynolds wasn't expected to contribute in the major leagues this season. Both Austin Meadows and Jordan Luplow are ahead of him on the organization's depth chart. Also, Jason Martin, who joined Double-A Altoona yesterday after a stint on the disabled list, is more advanced than Reynolds after playing 79 games for the Astros' Double-A affiliate last season.
Tomczyk also said relief pitcher Nick Burdi, who the Pirates acquired at the Rule 5 draft in December, has started to throw off a mound as he continues his rehab from Tommy John surgery. A second-round pick of the Twins in 2014, Burdi is viewed 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, 25, went 2-0 in 17 innings with one save, a 0.53 ERA, 20 strikeouts and a .161 batting average against last season at Double-A Chattanooga before suffering the elbow injury. He pitched only three innings in 2016 because of a rare bone bruise to the humerus in his pitching arm. His only full season of professional baseball was 2015, when he had a 4.52 ERA and 1.37 WHIP in 63 2/3 innings between High-A and Double-A.
"The men we bring in here for rehabs, boy, they're men; they will push us," Tomczyk said. "They will push us. They're driven. It's a testament to our scout and development system identifying who these guys are. If [Burdi] has that drive in rehab, when he comes back he's going to be some type of special pitcher."
Bo Schultz, a 32-year-old reliever signed to a minor-league contract this offseason, has pitched 2 2/3 innings at High-A Bradenton and is expected to continue his rehab program. Right-handed reliever Jesus Liranzo, who the Pirates claimed off waivers and assigned to Double-A Altoona last week, was also placed on the disabled list as a way to prepare him to pitch in a game.