Jake Woodford has traveled many places this season.
A former four year big leaguer with the St. Louis Cardinals, the 27-year old started his 2024 baseball season with the Charlotte Knights, the Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox.
In 10 starts for the Knights, he went 1-3 with a 5.26 ERA, 1.389 WHIP, and a 2.47 K/BB ratio. He spent nearly two months with Charlotte before getting a promotion to the major leagues with the White Sox, getting his first MLB appearance of the season on May 28th.
The righty had a less than ideal first start for the Chicago, going 4.1 innings and allowing 5 hits and 3 earned runs. However, his follow up appearance, coming on June 6th, was substantially worse. He lasted 4.0 innings and was lit up for 10 hits, 7 earned runs, and a pair of homers. He walked and struck out 3 batters.
Back to back rough outings and credited losses got Woodford designated for assignment, where he rejected being re-assigned to Charlotte and elected free agency.
That’s where the Pirates organization came into play, signing him to a minor league deal and assigning him to their own Triple-A affiliate in Indianapolis. There, his numbers had a massive bounce back.
He started 7 games for the Indians, where he went 1-2 with a 2.29 ERA, 1.019 WHIP, and a whopping 7.40 K/BB ratio. He was dominant on the mound in red and black, and with the Pirates suffering some pitching injuries, Woodford had done more than enough to earn the call, especially considering the Pirates had lost a lot of their other minor league options.
Woodford joined the team during a road trip in Houston, making his Pirates debut on July 31st and pitching 5.0 innings. His outing was marred by defensive mistakes that allowed 3 unearned runs to score while Woodford was on the mound.
That was the story for Woodford during his first few games as a Pirate. You might remember that game against the Astros as the one where Oneil Cruz tried to make a play in the outfield and failed miserably, sparking a spirited conversation online.
Defensive mistakes, bad luck, and a Pirates offense that refused to give him run support plagued Woodford in his early days with Pittsburgh.
In no game was that more evident than his start on August 12th in San Diego, where he went 6.0 innings and had held the Padres offense to only 3 hits and 1 earned run. Despite his terrific efforts, the Pirates were shutout, meaning Woodford was on the hook for the loss.
However, this game also marked a turning point for Woodford. He has made a pair of starts since that game and has given up a total of 16 hits, 15 runs, 12 earned runs, 4 walks, 7 strikeouts, and a 2 home runs in only 7.1 innings worth of work.
His ERA on the major league season is now up to 8.01, and he now carries an 0-6 record, including being charged with his fourth straight loss in as many games.
Even if the Pirates offense still, as a whole, lacks the ability to hang in a lot of games, it is no longer bad luck that is dragging Woodford down. It’s himself.
Woodford has never been a huge strikeout pitcher at the major league level, especially not this season. He relies on groundballs and flyballs to get him through innings, and when hitters get a hold of him, Woodford will get lit up.
Woodford was always going to be a bit of an experiment with the Pirates. The team didn’t have a clear cut role for him (in the same way that they don’t have one for Domingo Germán), using him as a reliever and a starter based on the day.
Make no mistake, he earned that promotion, but as is the case with any call up, especially due to injuries, he would have had to prove that he deserved to stay. In 22.0 total innings with the Pirates, he is 0-4 with a 6.95 ERA, 1.320 WHIP, and has given up 23 total runs (17 earned).
Even if this season is over for the Pirates (and after we’ve reached the point where Rowdy Tellez is pitching for them, it feels like we have), the stat line Woodford has put up just isn’t going to cut it at the major league level.
Given that the Pirates have lost a decent amount of their Triple-A pitching depth, whether to free agency desertions or waiver claims after getting called up themselves, the Pirates wouldn’t have a lot of options to go to instead of him. Luckily, there’s a pretty popular Pirate who has been rehabbing in Indianapolis, and after a dominant start with his old farm club, he looks to be ready to go.
Jared Jones, who has been on the Injured List since early July with a lat issue, is coming off a 5.0 inning rehab start against the Columbus Clippers, where he held them to a single hit and struck out 10 batters out of the 16 total he faced.
He’s ready.
So the solution becomes pretty easy: activate Jones from the IL and designate Woodford for assignment. The Pirates, and their fans, have longed for the return of Jones, and the rookie right-hander can slot in the rotation spot that Woodford has been occupying for the last few weeks.
Woodford hasn’t been put into the easiest position, but he also hasn’t done himself that many favors over his last few games. The experiment has to end now.
Fifth Avenue Sports 
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