Demilio: No Reason for Ke’Bryan Hayes to Return This Season

PITTSBURGH — It’s been a difficult season for Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, who hasn’t performed they way he would hope and has battled lingering back issues. 

Though it hasn’t necessarily been explicitly stated as such, and Hayes would never use it as an excuse himself, it’s hard to envision the two don’t go hand in hand together.

Two separate stints on the injured list have limited the 27-year-old to 96 games. He slashed a lowly .233/.283/.290 with only 13 extra-base hits, including four home runs. 

It’s discouraging for Hayes, who looked like he turned the corner in the second half of last season. 2023 was by far Hayes’ most successful full season with the Pirates. He finished the year with a .271 batting average, a .762 OPS and set career-highs with 31 doubles, 15 home runs and 61 RBIs.

The defense that won him his first Gold Glove last season has still been strong, but not quite the same as it had been through the first few years of his career, yet another indication he hasn’t been 100% this season. 

Hayes is currently on the 10-day injured list with low back inflammation. Pirates Director of Sports Medicine Todd Tomczyk provided an update on Hayes on Friday.

“The plan is to get his body and his core strong as it possibly can and get in the best cardiovascular shape that he can. And he’s doing that. He’s working through that. The plan is to begin some light baseball activities, light meaning playing catch, then we’ll where we end up from there. Ke’Bryan is in a very good mindset right now and he’s doing a very good job of dominating that.”

The season is nearing the finish line. After an 8-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals on Friday night, the Pirates have 15 games remaining on their schedule.

When asked whether Hayes’ season is over or if he would return to the field before the season finale against the Yankees in New York, Tomczyk said it’s, “still to be determined,” but ended with saying the course of action the Pirates should take.

“Big picture is to get him in the best shape possible for the 2025 season,” said Tomczyk. 

Considering Hayes is only just about to start doing some light baseball activities, it doesn’t make sense to rush him back to get him a few more game reps to end the season. The risk far outweighs the reward. 

By the time he could even be close to returning to the field, Hayes will have already been sidelined for more than a month. Triple-A Indianapolis’ season ends one week before the Pirates’ season does, so a rehab assignment feels like a long shot.

Do you really want to throw a player you have $70 million invested in back into the fire without a real chance to get his feet under him – live batting practice and hitting off the Trajekt machine notwithstanding?

Back injuries are serious. I remember our John Perrotto expressed his concern that Hayes’ back issues could continue to be an issue when they popped up again last season and he was correct. 

General manager Ben Cherington has indicated several times that surgery isn’t currently being considered for Hayes. With that in mind, the best thing for Hayes might just be some extra rest heading into an offseason where he can focus more time on getting as healthy as he can for next season. 

I get it. Hayes is a competitor and anyone in his position would want to return to the field as quickly as possible. But Hayes means much more to the Pirates in 2025 than he does in 2024.