Andrew Lambo went down with a thumb injury in early May. Originally he thought it was a bruised thumb, and was scheduled to take a few weeks off. By the end of his three-week break it was determined that he would need surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament.
“I hate taking myself out of the lineup,” Lambo said on the initial evaluation and trying to return after a break. “It’s better to be aware of your body, and I’m learning that. Sometimes it’s okay to push things, and sometimes it’s not. It’s just a lesson, you can’t really push something like that.”
Lambo thought he was starting to get better as the rehab went on. He was taking grounders and swinging a bat towards the end of the break.
“I was able to swing, I was able to do things, but still something was a little off,” Lambo said.
After the three weeks was up, Lambo told the Pirates that something felt off. He went to get an MRI, and it was determined that he needed surgery. The original timetable was scheduled for a return after 6-8 weeks. Lambo is on the early side of that timetable.
“When I was in the cast, we were still working and doing a lot of things,” Lambo said on his early return. “I think we picked up a lot of time doing that. We didn’t really kind of sit around for the time I was in the cast.”
He just played a complete game today in the GCL, which was his second in a row. The next step would usually be a return to Indianapolis, although with the Triple-A All-Star break coming up next week, it’s possible Lambo could go to Jamestown for a bit, to avoid having three days off right after he returns. He could return to Indianapolis following the Triple-A All-Star break, which ends next Thursday.
Tim started Pirates Prospects in 2009 from his home in Virginia, which was 40 minutes from where Pedro Alvarez made his pro debut in Lynchburg. That year, the Lynchburg Hillcats won the Carolina League championship, and Pirates Prospects was born from Tim's reporting along the way. The site has grown over the years to include many more writers, and Tim has gone on to become a credentialed MLB reporter, producing Pirates Prospects each year, and will publish his 11th Prospect Guide this offseason. He has also served as the Pittsburgh Pirates correspondent for Baseball America since 2019. Behind the scenes, Tim is an avid music lover, and most of the money he gets paid to run this site goes to vinyl records.
Had we given up on every Pirate that had a bad month this year, we wouldn’t have many players left. The difference is that Huntington had a Cialis strength boner to trade for Ike Davis since last year. The boon from sending Lambo down and bringing him back up could be how Dean Treanor succesfully retooled Andrew’s swing. He no longer tries to pull everything and can spray the ball all over the field. To hell with going to Indianapolis when there’s a playoff spot to be had again in Pittsburgh.
It is even more than a power problem at first base. If Ike Davis could just knock in runs he would be doing good, but he doesn’t even do that. Too many runners are being left on base.
His on base percentage is meaningless since he is far too slow and lumbering on the bases, as is Gaby Sanchez. What good is a base runner who has to be removed for a pinch runner in order to get him all the way around the bases?
If the platoon could at least drive in runs their lack of power could be overlooked.
Hopefully Andrew Lambo realizes that producing runs is what the Pirates need. He doesn’t have to muscle everything up and try to hit home runs. Just coming through when runners are in scoring position would make him an asset.
Jamestown? Bradenton Marauders have 2 OF’ers on the DL and Josh Bell on the cusp of a promotion to AA. Why leave Bradenton when there is playing time available High A?
Any idea when he first hurt it? Was the injury bothering him over the winter/Spring Training?
Early May when he dove for a ball and landed on it.
Will be looking forward to his return. I still have hope for him being part of the push for a second playoff appearance. The current platoon at first is not delivering the power a team needs from a corner position.
I agree in that I would like to see more power out of 1B but I’m don’t know that Lambo is the answer. I doubt they make another trade this year for a 1B. I think if Davis were to get hurt in the 2nd half and Lambo was healthy that he would get a shot. I am interested to see what is done at the deadline because I think a fairly big trade will be made this year. I have a feeling a splash trade, which means bigger than the last couple years.