Extra Bases: Rodriguez exits game with finger laceration
The Pirates may be down a catcher, and a first baseman, in the near future after Endy Rodriguez was forced to exit tonight's 10-3 win over the Nationals after this happened in the second at bat of the game:
Rodriguez was seen shaking his hand after the play and was then replaced by Henry Davis after stepping into the dugout. He later appeared in the dugout with a splint on his right index finger. Derek Shelton revealed that Rodriguez had to get four stitches on that right index finger and will likely have to take a trip to the IL.
"I would say with stitches on his hand, it’s a really good chance it’s going to be an IL," Shelton said.
Through the first 17 games of the season, Rodriguez has been a stop gap at first base as Spencer Horwitz continues to rehab his right wrist. He's also, as he did on this night, been a back-up behind the plate.
Shelton said today that Joey Bart (back) caught a bullpen before tonight's game, so while they might take it easy with him they still have two capable catchers on the roster. The bigger question remains at first base. Enmanuel Valdez has played there in recent weeks with Jared Triolo being on the IL, but who becomes his backup?
"(Adam) Frazier can play there, so we could do that," Shelton said afterward. "Then we’ll have to figure it out from there."
As the injuries continue to pile up, the Pirates find themselves having to be more flexible with their lineup. With Rodriguez going down, more roster moves are surely on the horizon.
• After instilling some confidence in his team with a batch of Phiten necklaces, Andrew McCutchen showed that he can still play a little outfield as he nears the end of his career.
McCutchen talked at length tonight about his desire to continue to play the field. The guy just wants to get into the lineup and he'll do whatever it takes to do so. He said if he couldn't do it, he wouldn't have went to the coaching staff and told them to "Throw me out there. I need to hit, especially when I’m feeling pretty good."
"I’ve always wanted to do it. DH is hard. The hardest thing to do with DH is getting your legs under you and running hard. That’s tough," McCutchen said. "You may have a few games where you didn’t really have to run hard. The next thing you know, you hit a ball on the ground, and you have to go. Like, ‘Man, I don’t think I got it.’ When you’re in the outfield, you’re constantly running back and forth. You might make a play here and there. You’re constantly moving your legs. You stay in the game. Your legs are under you. When you have to run, you run. That’s the advantage of playing defense. It’s nice to be out there."
• Paul Skenes was pretty happy with how his first matchups against former Louisiana State teammate Dylan Crews went tonight. Crews grounded out twice against Skenes and went 0-for-4 with one strikeout on the night.
"It was good. It was cool. I know it's the first of many times we're going to be facing each other. He's seen all my stuff and I'm sure the video is out there circulating of the first time I faced him," Skenes said. "It was cool, kind of a full-circle thing. There's probably a handful of guys up there with him in terms of guys that I've played with that I respect as much as I do him. Just really good to share a field with him again."
Here's that video:
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THE ASYLUM
Greg Macafee
4:10 am - 04.15.2025NORTH SHOREExtra Bases: Rodriguez exits game with finger laceration
The Pirates may be down a catcher, and a first baseman, in the near future after Endy Rodriguez was forced to exit tonight's 10-3 win over the Nationals after this happened in the second at bat of the game:
Rodriguez was seen shaking his hand after the play and was then replaced by Henry Davis after stepping into the dugout. He later appeared in the dugout with a splint on his right index finger. Derek Shelton revealed that Rodriguez had to get four stitches on that right index finger and will likely have to take a trip to the IL.
"I would say with stitches on his hand, it’s a really good chance it’s going to be an IL," Shelton said.
Through the first 17 games of the season, Rodriguez has been a stop gap at first base as Spencer Horwitz continues to rehab his right wrist. He's also, as he did on this night, been a back-up behind the plate.
Shelton said today that Joey Bart (back) caught a bullpen before tonight's game, so while they might take it easy with him they still have two capable catchers on the roster. The bigger question remains at first base. Enmanuel Valdez has played there in recent weeks with Jared Triolo being on the IL, but who becomes his backup?
"(Adam) Frazier can play there, so we could do that," Shelton said afterward. "Then we’ll have to figure it out from there."
As the injuries continue to pile up, the Pirates find themselves having to be more flexible with their lineup. With Rodriguez going down, more roster moves are surely on the horizon.
• After instilling some confidence in his team with a batch of Phiten necklaces, Andrew McCutchen showed that he can still play a little outfield as he nears the end of his career.
McCutchen talked at length tonight about his desire to continue to play the field. The guy just wants to get into the lineup and he'll do whatever it takes to do so. He said if he couldn't do it, he wouldn't have went to the coaching staff and told them to "Throw me out there. I need to hit, especially when I’m feeling pretty good."
"I’ve always wanted to do it. DH is hard. The hardest thing to do with DH is getting your legs under you and running hard. That’s tough," McCutchen said. "You may have a few games where you didn’t really have to run hard. The next thing you know, you hit a ball on the ground, and you have to go. Like, ‘Man, I don’t think I got it.’ When you’re in the outfield, you’re constantly running back and forth. You might make a play here and there. You’re constantly moving your legs. You stay in the game. Your legs are under you. When you have to run, you run. That’s the advantage of playing defense. It’s nice to be out there."
• Paul Skenes was pretty happy with how his first matchups against former Louisiana State teammate Dylan Crews went tonight. Crews grounded out twice against Skenes and went 0-for-4 with one strikeout on the night.
"It was good. It was cool. I know it's the first of many times we're going to be facing each other. He's seen all my stuff and I'm sure the video is out there circulating of the first time I faced him," Skenes said. "It was cool, kind of a full-circle thing. There's probably a handful of guys up there with him in terms of guys that I've played with that I respect as much as I do him. Just really good to share a field with him again."
Here's that video:
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
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