WASHINGTON -- When the Pirates selected Angels fireballer Jose Soriano with the first overall pick in the Rule 5 draft last December, they knew they would have to wait a couple months before he potentially made his Major-League debut because he was recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Now it looks like he may never throw a pitch for them.
On Tuesday, the 22-year-old right-hander had a revision Tommy John surgery, according to director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk. He begun a potential rehab assignment in May, but was quickly sidelined again after experiencing renewed discomfort in his elbow.
He is projected to return in no sooner than 16 months, meaning that the soonest he could potentially return to competition would be during the 2022 instructional league or winter ball.
That timetable seriously puts Soriano’s future with the team into question.
As a Rule 5 pick, Soriano needs to be on the 40-man and MLB roster or be offered back to his original team, the Angels. Right now, he isn’t technically on either roster since he is on the 60-day injured list, so he is not taking up a spot currently, but he will need to be added back to the roster this offseason. The Pirates will have to decide if it is worth using one of their 40 spots on him this winter.
This offseason, the Pirates let Nick Burdi go after he underwent a second Tommy John surgery. They also parted ways with Edgar Santana in April after he had gone two years without pitching in the majors. Neither sets a good precedent for Soriano.
Those roster spots are going to be very valuable this winter in particular. The Pirates have a large class of prospects who will either need to be added or exposed to the Rule 5 draft. Some of the most prominent players includes Liover Peguero, Travis Swaggerty, Mason Martin, Cody Bolton, Tahnaj Thomas, Michael Burrows and Eddy Yean.
Almost all of those players have played above Class A and could potentially be optioned to the minors, two advantages Soriano does not have. He will need to be on the active roster for 90 days until he loses his Rule 5 status.
A decision does not have to be made until this offseason, but the odds the Pirates are willing to hang onto another pitcher through a three-year Rule 5 process, like they did with Burdi, does not look likely.
MORE INJURY NEWS
• Steven Brault (left lat) is scheduled throw a 30 pitch side session Thursday, and will throw all his pitches during it.
He will not be back before the All-Star break, but Tomczyk said he could envision him returning by late July if his rehab goes as planned.
• The Pirates' other Rule 5 pick, Luis Oviedo (calf), has resumed throwing off flat ground and off a slope.
In other prospect injury news Nick Gonzales (finger) should return to full baseball activities later this month. Curve second baseman Ji-Hwan Bae will be out four to six weeks with a Grade 1 MCL sprain in his left knee after his collision in right field last week.
• After making one relief appearance last weekend, Trevor Cahill reaggravated his left calf injury.
"He is undergoing treatments only at this time," Tomczyk said. "The plan is for him to be reassessed by the medical staff on Friday, upon the team’s return and ramp up a throwing program from there, hopefully."
• Colin Moran (back) is still day-to-day and is being evaluated if he could come off the bench Wednesday.
