Endy

Rodríguez

Rodríguez is expected to miss 7-9 months after undergoing left hip surgery last week. The 26-year-old former top prospect figures to be ready to return to game action at some point towards the end of spring training. There’s a chance he’s non-tendered by the Pirates this offseason if they decide to move forward with Rafael Flores Jr. as their primary backstop.

Rodríguez underwent a procedure to address a labrum tear and won’t be cleared to resume baseball activities until at least March, which means he’s going to miss time at the outset of next season. The 26-year-old was showing some really encouraging signs at the plate before hitting the injured list earlier this month. His absence opens the door for Rafael Flores to continue playing regularly between catcher and first base into next season.

It appears that Rodríguez is simply getting more information right now, and no decision has been made, but it’s an ominous turn of events for the 26-year-old who was performing well when healthy this season. The problem is that Rodríguez has struggled to remain healthy in his MLB career and may not be able to hold up to a full season of catching.

Sadly, injuries are becoming far too prevalent in Rodríguez’s career. The 26-year-old has produced when healthy for the Pirates this season, but this is now his third stint on the injured list this year, following previous injury-plagued seasons. There is no timeline for his return right now.

Rodriguez is going to miss his fourth straight game — assuming he doesn’t enter off the bench — while dealing with left hip discomfort. Henry Davis will continue to work behind the plate while Rodriguez isn’t available.

Rodríguez hasn’t required a trip to the injured list yet, but he’s sitting out for the third straight contest due to left hip discomfort. It’ll be Henry Davis continuing to handle the catching duties in his absence. The 26-year-old former top prospect has been rolling at the dish, hitting .284 (27-for-95) with six homers, 15 RBI and four steals over his last 30 games.

It’s the second straight game that the 26-year-old backstop has missed due to left hip discomfort. There haven’t been any rumblings yet that Rodriguez will require a stint on the injured list, but that could change if he doesn’t show improvement over the next couple of days.

Henry Davis will catch in his place against the Mets. Rodríguez was also absent Friday, but that just seemed to be a day off. If Rodríguez lands on the IL, the Pirates will probably call up a non-catcher (most likely Tyler Callihan or Billy Cook) and let Davis and Rafael Flores Jr. split time.

Rodríguez was the Pirates’ offense in this one. His two-run shot in the seventh accounted for their only two runs and came one inning after they snapped a stretch where nine consecutive batters struck out. As for Rodríguez, he’s now homered in consecutive games and has gone 9-for-30 with two home runs and four stolen bases in eight games since coming off the injured list.

Henry Davis isn’t catching Paul Skenes for the first time since last April. We’ll see if the change has an impact on Skenes from a performance standpoint, but the Pirates are going to keep rolling with Rodríguez behind the dish since he’s hitting .268/.380/.457 with six homers and six steals in 151 plate appearances since mid-May.