When it comes to areas of strengths and weaknesses, starting pitching has belonged in the former category for a large portion of the Pirates' season. The rotation ranks among the league's best in terms of ERA (3.60) and quality starts (42), but now, with only eight games remaining until the All-Star break, injuries are creeping up and challenging a group that was beginning to regain its depth.
A day after Jared Jones was shut down from throwing for two weeks due to a Grade 2 lat muscle strain, the Pirates suffered another scare when Bailey Falter exited alongside assistant athletic trainer Tony Leo during the third inning of the Pirates' 5-2 loss to the Mets Saturday at PNC Park. Falter was removed from the game with left posterior arm discomfort.
"Felt it mainly throughout most of the game," Falter said, adding that he's never experienced this type of injury before. "But after the second going into the third, it was pretty tapped out."
After allowing four hits in the first two innings and escaping two significant jams, Falter wanted nothing more than to stay in the game for as long as possible to cover innings and avoid adding stress onto the bullpen. He walked two of the first three batters he faced in the third and surrendered a hit in between to load the bases with nobody out. He then threw one pitch to Pete Alonso before Leo and Derek Shelton came out to check on him. The visit was a short one, as Falter quickly made his way to the dugout to conclude a premature outing.
"I noticed a little discomfort in the warmup pitches in the third," Falter said. "Didn't really throw too many strikes. It kind of flared up after that and I kind of just lost feel for it."
Joey Bart, another Pirates player who recently returned from the injured list, noticed something, too, when Falter began shaking his arm out on the mound.
"Sometimes pitchers, this is tough. I mean they throw the baseball, you guys can see how injuries are nowadays it's more than ever," Bart said. "I noticed that, but after talking to him, I felt like hopefully it's something that's not too serious, but I knew, I guess in that third inning, that we needed to get somebody else in there. I'm glad he could avoid that without something really getting carried away. Hopefully he's feeling better."
Falter will be re-evaluated on Sunday, but he showed little concern regarding the injury. Still, in light of Jones' recent injury diagnosis, there still is a level of uncertainty surrounding yet another crucial member of the Pirates' rotation.
"I think we'll have to figure that out depending on where we're at and what the severity is of it," Shelton said. "I mean, we know Jared's going to be out cause he's not throwing for the next two weeks. So, I think we'll figure it out. And then the fact that we have the break coming up, too, I think is something. But we just need to figure out how we're going to get through probably the next 10 days."
If Falter were to miss time, the Pirates would be left with a starting rotation that includes Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller and Martin Perez, who has made two starts since returning from his own stint on the injured list. Luis Ortiz, who Shelton announced as Sunday's starting pitcher, is capable of filling a role, while Quinn Priester and Marco Gonzales are among the pitchers currently rehabbing at Class AAA Indianapolis.
There are options, including ones that are getting healthier, but the Pirates didn't anticipate losing Jones for the remainder of the first half and having this uncertainty with Falter.
"I think anytime you lose starters or multiple starters, and I'm not saying we're losing Bailey, but when you have a situation where you lose starters, it tests your depth," Shelton said. "And, like I said, I mean we have what, 10 days before the break? So, we have to figure out what's best for us, most importantly what's best for the player and then what's best for us."