Pirates’ Bubba Chandler Leaves Rotation Spot in Question With Jared Jones’ Return Looming
PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Pirates face an interesting dilemma with right-hander Jared Jones set to return from the 60-day injured list.
Jones, who underwent right elbow surgery last May, completed his fifth rehab assignment on Sunday for Triple-A Indianapolis and is eligible to be reinstated.
So far, no decision has been finalized.
The Pirates could go in a number of different directions with Jones, both with his role and what the corresponding move will be.
One possible course of action Pittsburgh could decide to take involves Bubba Chandler, who started Wednesday’s 10-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs. Chandler allowed four runs on eight hits with two walks and five strikeouts in five innings. He threw 91 pitches — including 32 in the first inning — and 60 for strikes.
“There’s just so many things, little things that go into each pitch, delivery and all that stuff and sometimes it’s tough to sync up and you know what’s going on and the stuff that fits,” he said of his outing. “I think I fixed it after the first and they got some ugly hits in there. It’s a good team.”
To say that one outing would determine whether or not Chandler would hold onto his rotation spot once Jones returns is untrue, but his latest performance, combined with his season as a whole, doesn’t offer guaranteed security. Manager Don Kelly said following the loss that the Pirates will take everything into account in coming to a decision, including performances from the pitching staff on Wednesday.
“We’ve got a lot of tough decisions to make here coming up,” said Kelly. “We’re gonna sit down and beat it up a little bit more to come to a final answer, but we’re taking everything into account, including tonight.”
Chandler has looked good at times this season, and there’s no denying he has a big-league arsenal. He struck out a career-high 11 batters on Friday night against the Blue Jays in Toronto and wasn’t charged with an earned run in five innings.
But consistency has lacked, which is to be expected with rookie pitchers. There have been times where Chandler has been knocked around, and his season ERA now resides at 4.85 following his latest start.
“There’s electricity in there. There’s a young kid that’s navigating the big leagues trying to figure it out,” Kelly said of Chandler’s season. “There’s been some really, really good times and some electric stuff, and there’s been some learning moments that we’re always gonna deal with with young players.”
Sometimes, sending a player to the minor leagues to find more consistency can be beneficial for all parties.
Sending Chandler to Triple-A, or at least moving him to the bullpen, wouldn’t signal the Pirates are giving up hope. There are things for the rookie right-hander to work on, and doing so in the minor leagues – away from the spotlight and a team looking to push for the postseason – could take some pressure off him.
Or, if the Pirates opt to move him to a bulk role out of the bullpen, it’s one Chandler is familiar with from when he was first called up last season.
At the very least, those are two options for the Pirates to consider.
“He’s so hard on himself,” Kelly said when asked how Chandler can be more consistent. “Finding a way to slow that down and allow the talent he has to play in the strike zone.”
While nothing has been settled just yet, a decision is coming soon, and it very well could be as early as Thursday.
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