Endy

Rodríguez

It will be Rodriguez’s first taste of big league action this year as Henry Davis takes a seat in the day-game-after-a-night-game scenario against RHP Chase Dollander. Rodriguez was hitting .221/.326/.301 for Triple-A Indianapolis in 136 plate appearances. The prospect luster appears to have worn off here after several injuries.

Rodríguez returns to the majors with fellow backstop Joey Bart heading to the injured list with a foot infection. The 25-year-old was considered one of the better catching prospects in the game just a couple years ago before elbow issues derailed him. He’s batted just .210/.276/.311 with three homers in 261 plate appearances over 75 games in the big leagues dating back to 2023.

No word yet on how much time Bart will miss. The 29-year-old backstop heads to the injured list ahead of Tuesday’s series opener against the Rockies. It’ll be Henry Davis and Endy Rodríguez handling the catching duties in his absence.

Rodriguez hit .173/.246/.250 in 57 plate appearances last year. He managed a .308/.400/.577 Spring Training line in 28 at-bats, but has missed so much time over the past couple of years that the Pirates likely wanted to see him get an extended run of at-bats. It’s possible he factors into the Pirates plans in the summer if he hits well at Indianapolis.

The 25-year-old backstop tagged Yankees’ starter Max Fried for his 386-foot (104.0 mph EV) solo shot to open the fifth inning. He also drew a walk in the eighth inning and scored on a two-run double off the bat of Shawn Ross. Rodríguez is enjoying a nice spring, hitting .250 (5-for-20) with a pair of homers, five RBI and a stolen base. If he works his way back into the Pirates’ catching mix, he could wind up being an interesting deep league option for fantasy purposes.

Rodríguez and Ryan O’Hearn both hit wind-aided three-run homers off Dietrich Enns in a sixth-run fifth inning. Rodríguez’s would have been a routine flyout most days, but he was due for some good luck in his first game appearance since June 6. The former top prospect has been unable to put together a full season since 2022, and he’ll probably have to enjoy some success in Triple-A at the beginning of the year in order to earn another shot. If he could stay healthy, he might still have the most upside of the Pirates’ catchers.

It’s basically a second straight lost year for Rodríguez, who underwent Tommy John surgery last summer. He played in just 18 games for the Pirates, hitting .173/.246/.250 in 57 plate appearances. The good news for him is that Joey Bart has regressed and Henry Davis still hasn’t done anything to establish himself. Unless the Pirates target an upgrade from the current group, Rodríguez should have a chance to compete for the starting job next spring.

Rodriguez has been on the injured list with elbow inflammation since early June. He visited Dr. ElAttrache, who performed Rodriguez’s last elbow surgery, later that same month, and the team opted to give him a PRP injection. The fact that he is going back to Dr. ElAttrache now is not a great sign for his recovery, but we will wait for more updates.

That explains why he was moved to the 60-day injured list on Friday. That determination was made after a follow-up examination with Dr. Neal ElAttrache. It sounds like Rodriguez is going to be sidelined well into the second half of the season and can probably be dropped in any season-long leagues.

Nothing has changed in the prognosis for the 25-year-old backstop, this was merely done as a procedural move to free up a spot on the team’s 40-man roster for the addition of Michael Darrell-Hicks on Friday afternoon. There’s still no word on how long the Pirates expect him to be sidelined for, though he now won’t be eligible to return until the middle of August.