Pirates injury report: Ke'Bryan Hayes making 'very nice strides,' pitchers 'making progress'
May 12—Ke'Bryan Hayes remains the most prominent Pittsburgh Pirates player on the injured list, though several pitchers are making progress in their recovery while one has paused from throwing.
Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk called Hayes shifting from the 10-day to 60-day IL "more of a mechanical roster move," and said the rookie third baseman "continues to make very nice strides" and build up volume in his swings while working on his lower body.
"He continues to keep his legs and lower half in good shape for when the game is ready for him," Tomczyk said. "His lower half and the rest of his body will be in nice, fine-tuned position."
Tomczyk said "things are progressing really nicely" for first baseman Colin Moran (left groin strain), who resumed light baseball activities before Wednesday's game against the Cincinnati Reds. Tomczyk said he's "very optimistic about a return sooner than later" for Moran.
Tomczyk said right-handed reliever Kyle Crick has stopped throwing after experiencing right triceps discomfort Sunday but is expected to resume "in the coming days, hopefully this weekend."
Right-handed starter Chad Kuhl (right shoulder discomfort) is "making nice strides" with his rehabilitation, and will throw a live batting practice/simulated game.
Left-handed starter Steven Brault (left lat strain) has initiated one-arm plyometrics, Tomczyk said, and is expected to resume playing formal catch in the coming days.
Lefty reliever Austin Davis (elbow) started his rehab assignment with an appearance for the Low-A Bradenton Marauders, where he gave up one run on one hit and one walk with four strikeouts in two innings in an 18-9 win over Fort Myers on Sunday.
"No complaints," Tomczyk said. "He recovered well from that outing, and he will continue to progress through his rehab assignment as well."
Right-hander Jose Soriano, the top pick in the Rule 5 Draft, is projected to begin a rehab assignment within the next five-to-seven days in what Tomczyk called "very long, arduous journey coming back from UCL reconstruction."
"We want him to have a nice build-up, a nice progression, a nice way to stress the arm in games, different levels, and we're really excited to see how it plays in live games," Tomczyk said. "So there's no magic solution, there's no magic number or games. We'll take that as we see how the body responds, how the stuff plays with each outing. ... We're just excited to see him out there competing."
Another pitcher coming off Tommy John surgery, reliever Blake Cederlind, is going to be discharged from the post-surgical brace and will continue to "work on his range of motion and soft-tissue healing."
Kevin Gorman is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Kevin by email at kgorman@triblive.com or via Twitter .
