CHICAGO — Turbulence in the Pirates' bullpen may be responsible for an injury to one of their seven relievers. Right-hander Richard Rodriguez, who pitched or warmed up in five of the past six games, was placed on the 10-day disabled list with right shoulder inflammation Friday.
The Pirates recalled right-hander Dovydas Neverauskas, who had a 1.17 ERA in 23 innings at Triple-A Indianapolis, to take Rodriguez's spot on the 25-man roster, and he is expected to be active for today's game against the Cubs.
"Shoot, it's been five out of six days [Rodriguez has pitched]," Clint Hurdle told reporters at Wrigley Field. "I think it flared up the last 48 hours, but I've either put him on the mound to get ready or he's pitched in five out of six days. It's never happened in the eight years I've been here. Unfortunately, it's the collateral damage of other guys not being able to finish innings. Some of it's on me, and I think it's a situation similar to spring training."
Rodriguez, 28, had a 2.38 ERA with 33 strikeouts and only one unintentional walk in 22 2/3 inning since being recalled from Triple-A on April 13.
Rodriguez pitched one inning in the series opener against the Dodgers Tuesday and threw 2/3 innings on Wednesday when Steven Brault was unable to complete the sixth inning of an 11-9 win. Additionally, Rodriguez has not had much time off in 16 months.
Rodriguez pitched all of last season in the Orioles' system, appearing in five major-league games in September, and logged 21 1/3 innings for Aguilas Cibaenas in the Dominican Winter League during the offseason. Then, he pitched 15 innings during Aguilas' postseason run — the most among the league’s relief pitchers — with 23 strikeouts to three walks.
Rodriguez had less than a week off before he had to report to Pirate City for spring training in February. As a result, he was fatigued near the end of the month, and the Pirates shut him down at the beginning of March. Rodriguez pitched five innings for Indianapolis before he was recalled in April to stabilize the Pirates' middle relief.
Neverauskas, who was sent down when Rodriguez was recalled, had a 10.80 ERA and 2.10 WHIP in 6 2/3 innings to start the season. Hurdle said Neverauskas' fastball command has improved since he returned to Indianapolis — the Lithuanian averaged 12.1 strikeouts per nine innings there — however, he's also averaged 4.3 walks per nine innings.
Despite the inconsistency, Hurdle expressed confidence that another stint in the minors has improved Neverauskas' confidence.
"He was very good at the self-evaluation walking out the door in the conversations I had with him," Hurdle said. "When you have young men, they're learning stuff. Not just on the field, but they're learning how to prepare, the focus it takes to prepare. What they don't need to get caught up in, what they need to stay focused on. It basically comes down to things that are in their control. I think it was a very valuable lesson for him and hopefully he'll be able to put it in play and make the most of it."