Joe Musgrove, making his third rehab start as he works to finally join the Pirates' starting rotation, was almost perfect for Triple-A Indianapolis on Saturday night.
The 25-year-old pitcher did not allow a hit in 5 2/3 innings against the Columbus Clippers at Victory Field in Indianapolis, striking out six and not walking a batter before reaching his pitch count. Musgrove retired 17 of the 18 batters he faced, throwing 60 of his 79 pitches for strikes. The Clippers' only baserunner was the result of a fielding error.
"I've been feeling good," Musgrove said in a video released by Indianapolis' media relations department. "Better and better each start out. Tonight was the night that I've finally felt all of the pieces come together with the delivery and the release point and everything. I'd say tonight was the best I've felt."
Musgrove, one of four players acquired from the Astros for Gerrit Cole, has yet to pitch in the regular season for the Pirates because of right shoulder discomfort. He was placed on the 10-day disabled list on April 2 and has made three rehab starts, beginning with three innings at High-A Bradenton on May 3.
The right-hander then allowed one run in four innings for Double-A Altoona last week before having his rehab transferred to Triple-A. He was scheduled to throw five innings for the Indians Saturday, but the Pirates chose to have him go out for an additional inning to reach 80 pitches, rather than reaching his pitch count in the bullpen.
"Fastball command was a big thing tonight, being able to control the inner half to righties and lefties, really set up my cutter and slider," Musgrove said. "My fastball is always the first thing I want to see in an outing. If I can command that, you know it's going to be an opportunity to go late in the game."
He'll need another rehab start to reach 100 pitches before rejoining the Pirates, possibly in time for the team's three-game series in Cincinnati from May 22-24. He's expected to immediately take a spot in the starting rotation, as the club is currently using only four starting pitchers since it had three off-days in a seven-day span.
Musgrove allowed nine earned runs in 11 2/3 innings for the Pirates this spring, recording a 1.54 WHIP and 6.94 ERA. He was limited to only three starts because he experienced right shoulder discomfort in the bullpen at Pirate City before his first scheduled live batting practice.
This was the second time in less than a year Musgrove was placed on the disabled list with a shoulder injury. He spent 13 days on the DL last May with right shoulder discomfort but made 28 more appearances for the Astros the rest of the season.
He and Colin Moran were the centerpieces of the five-player trade in January that sent Cole to the Astros, but the former first-round pick has a poor track record as a starter in the major leagues — he had a 6.12 ERA and 1.51 WHIP in 78 innings as a starter for the Astros last season. On the other hand, Musgrove had a 1.44 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in 31 1/3 innings in relief last season.
"The recovery has been the biggest thing for me," Musgrove said. "After my outings I've had a really hard time getting back to feeling normal within those first couple days. That's not normal for me. I've always been someone who recovers really well and don't deal with much soreness. That's something that's new for me, but has all been a learning process for me. It's an opportunity for me to learn how to pitch when I don't feel my best."
