Today, the Pirates placed Nick Burdi on the 10-day injured list with a right biceps/elbow injury, recalling Steven Brault from Indianapolis in his place.
According to team officials, Burdi received an MRA (magnetic resonance angiography) this morning and is in the process of getting a second opinion from Dr. Dieth Mesiter. An MRA differs from the more common MRI in that it focuses on blood vessels instead of the surrounding tissues.
When you consider this:
Video of the Nick Burdi injury pic.twitter.com/GFxnDL3rO7
— zach (@zachleft) April 23, 2019
... Burdi's initial diagnosis sounds promising. But don't expect Clint Hurdle to get too excited just yet.
"I want to let this thing play out," Hurdle was telling media members inside his office at PNC Park before the Pirates' 7:05 p.m. game vs. the Diamondbacks. "A lot of people like to get information out first. Again, I'm a big fan of getting information out that's correct and accurate, so we'll just wait and see, man. We're hoping for the best. A lot of thoughts and prayers going his way."
It seems Hurdle's mentality permeated his locker room as well. Jordan Lyles was quick to remind me before the team's warmups that this preliminary result is just that: preliminary.
"There are still tests that need to be done," Lyles said. "I don't know the exact measures of what happened. I think there might be another opinion on the way, but just as a teammate, seeing him go down is tough."
Then, Lyles dropped my favorite line of our brief chat. Yes, these guys care deeply about winning baseball games. Their performance defines their careers and their legacies to a degree.
But it's not everything. Not even close:
On that front, Hurdle said his players don't need any special consolation or guidance in the wake of such a visually gruesome injury to a teammate. In fact, he never specifically addressed it with them.
"There [are] times when I don't think you need to overcomplicate the situation," Hurdle said. "They need to feel what they need to feel, and they have. And they've put their arms around each and every one of these guys and embraced them."
The past Saturday, the team received another injury scare when Starling Marte collided with Erik Gonzalez while tracking a fly ball to shallow center. In that collision Gonzalez sustained a fractured left clavicle, placing him on the 60-day injured list, while Marte suffered an abdominal wall contusion, putting him on the 10-day IL. That same game, Lyles took a line drive to his right hand and had to exit after six innings. He was ultimately cleared to resume normal baseball activities and will make his next scheduled start Wednesday night against the Diamondbacks.
All this has granted the opportunity to navigate choppy waters together and, as Hurdle put it, to heal as a unit.
"There's a healing going on right now already with the other three guys and now with Nick [Burdi]," Hurdle said. "So I believe these men have grown to a position [where] they don't need to be pulled together and told — especially told — what to do... Watch what they do. And that's what I've really grown to really appreciate is watching what they do and how they handle it. And I think they've handled it very professionally."
For a fellow pitcher like Lyles, Burdi's injury would seem particularly brutal to watch unfold. Seeing that harsh reality play out on the field isn't easy, but Lyles says it won't weigh on his mind moving forward, nor does he expect it to affect his teammates' psyches.
"Once you're competing, that's not in your mind," Lyles said. "Pitchers don't really think about it, especially not with throwing they don't. But it's a perfect reminder that you never know what can happen at any time and you gotta be thankful for a healthy body, healthy arm, healthy mind. You hate to see those things happen like they did last night."
Despite the many injuries and the team's recent two-game skid, the Pirates, at 12-8, still sit atop the NL Central. Are the injuries somehow a blessing, helping the team become stronger together and play inspired baseball?
Nah. Not in Lyles' eyes. There's something much more obvious leading to the Pirates' early success.
"I'm not one of those people, I don't know... I think that stuff's eyewash," Lyles told me. "Something happens and then that brings someone closer? No. I don't believe in that. We're playing good ball with guys being down right now. Guys are stepping up. The young guys are coming up and playing really well. That's the reason why we're keeping this afloat."
