BRADENTON, Fla. -- The Pirates placed right-hander Blake Cederlind on the 60-day injured list Friday with a UCL strain, putting his 2021 season potentially into question.
The news came in the club's press release that formally announced the signing of right-hander Trevor Cahill to a one-year deal. Cederlind was the corresponding move to add Cahill to the roster.
Cederlind sustained the injury Wednesday night in Tampa, Fla., in an outing where he walked two and hit a batter. He was pulled after 2/3 of an inning.
At this time, he and the team are discussing what the best recommended intervention is to treat the injury. Surgery is a potential option, and if that happens, it would prevent Cederlind from pitching in 2021.
"That doesn't mean it [surgery] will happen," Ben Cherington said, not ruling out the possibility of him being able to rehab back. "... We need more information first, but I think we need to be aware that both of those things would be on the table, potentially."
Even in the best case scenario, Cederlind will not be able to pitch for months.
"It's an unfortunate situation for him and for us," Derek Shelton said of the situation. "We just have to see what we have moving forward, in terms of what the doctors say."
Cederlind, 25, is arguably the Pirates' top reliever prospect, mostly due to him having a power sinker that can hit triple digits. He also has a breaking pitch that he spent the offseason trying to make more of a slider than a cutter.
Cederlind wowed in spring training last year, but missed all of summer camp at PNC Park in July after testing positive for COVID-19. He spent most of the season at the team's alternate training site in Altoona, Pa., but he did make his big league debut in September. He allowed two runs over four innings in that first taste of the majors.
Shelton said Cederlind was in competition for an opening day spot, but since the Pirates seem to have most of their bullpen set, he would have likely started at the alternate site and then been promoted later.
