Jared Jones has not pitched for the Pirates in over a month and a half, but earlier in August it looked like we were getting pretty close to seeing Jones get activated off the Injured List.
All that he had to do was get back on track in a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis, and one of Pittsburgh’s most exciting young pitchers would be back in action.
Then, things took a turn in Indianapolis. In his first two rehab starts in Triple-A, Jones tossed 6.0 innings and surrendered 9 hits and 7 earned runs.
He had a particularly rough second outing with Indy, where in 3.1 innings and allowed 7 hits and 5 runs (4 earned).
Those games casted some doubt on Jones’ timeline of return, and likely extended his stay in Circle City a little bit longer than he and the organization originally planned on.
But the extra little patience paid off.
Jones was fantastic in his third rehab start with the Indians, going 5.0 strong innings and allowing just a lone hit and no earned runs. He struck out 10 batters, doing so in rather slick fashion.
That looks a lot more like the Jared Jones that Pirates fans got accustomed to seeing on the mound for the Pirates this season, and that is a really encouraging sign.
His fastball was in the high 90s all game, topping out at 99.5 miles per hour.
Jones was in line to get the win, having left the game with his team up 1-0 in the sixth. However, a fellow pitcher who is on a rehab assignment didn’t have the night he wanted. Colin Holderman surrendered a home run that tied the game, and Indianapolis eventually lost in extra innings.
This will likely mark Jones’ final appearance with Indianapolis on this rehab stint. The Pirates would like to get him back at some point soon and a start like this makes you a lot more comfortable about officially activating him off the Injured List.
The righty started 16 games for the club before a lat injury took him down in early July. He went 5-6 with a 3.56 ERA, 1.110 WHIP, and 3.63 K/BB ratio in 91.0 total innings for the Pirates.
(Featured photo from Getty Images)
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