PITTSBURGH — Gerrit Cole is expected to miss one more start that originally hoped.
When general manager Neal Huntington was contemplating putting Cole on the disabled list with his right triceps strain, he said his thought process was missing one start or missing two starts. Cole will be eligible to come back from the disabled list on June 26, which corresponds with a hole in the Pirates’ starting rotation, but trainer Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Cole won’t be ready by then.
“It’s day-to-day,” Tomczyk said. “We see how he responds to the previous day’s throwing.”
The Pirates will need another spot starter against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday, because they sent down Tuesday’s starter, Wilfredo Boscan, Wednesday afternoon.
It’s possible that Cole will require a rehab start or a simulated game in the bullpen before returning to the Pirates’ rotation.
“We’re still working through that,” Tomczyk said. “It depends on how he recovers, how he throws, and that’s a collective effort with Gerrit most importantly, Ray [Searage], the front office and Clint [Hurdle].
Tomczyk said that even though the time frame for his return has extended there has been no setback in Cole’s recovery. He has resumed throwing off flat ground after taking an initial break to rest the muscle.
“In a thrower, it truly is day-to-day,” Tomczyk said. “You don’t know how that arm is going to respond to the demands of the previous day. It’s encouraging that’s he back out there.”
NOTES
• Left fielder Starling Marte is not in the team’s starting lineup after being pulled from Tuesday’s loss with left foot discomfort in the eighth inning. The team is still evaluating the amount of participation Marte will be able to tolerate. It does not sound like a long-term injury.
• Tomczyk classified Andrew McCutchen’s thumb as a “maintenance thing” and said that ice and padding are “part of the process,” but he has not needed any shots or injections.
• Francisco Cervelli is back to baseball activities 11 days after his hamate surgery. Those activities include swinging a bat one-handed and throwing, but not catching. While the hamate injury has the potential to be a season-long nuisance for Cervelli from a hitting standpoint, Tomczyk is not expecting any issues with his receiving ability.
• Ryan Vogelsong threw off a slope for the first time Wednesday without any negative effects to his left eye or the surrounding area. He will be re-examined on Monday and a plan for resumption of pitching activities will be made at that time.
• Minor-league catcher Elias Diaz is set to catch and throw to bases while coming out of a crouch this week as he continues his rehab from elbow surgery.
