In a pair of roster moves announced on Monday, the Pirates designated catcher Brett Sullivan for assignment and reinstated reliever Dauri Moreta from his rehab assignment, optioning him to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Moreta was a big part of Pittsburgh’s bullpen two years ago. After being acquired in a trade that sent Kevin Newman Cincinnati’s way, Moreta threw a big league career-high 58 innings for the Pirates in 2023, with a 3.72 ERA, 1.086 WHIP, and 3.17 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

He established himself as a fan favorite candidate with his antics both in the dugout and on the mound. Whether it was forming his body into a K or flashing a wad of cash after an inning-ending play, Moreta was a fun guy to have on the team.

The Pirates were hopeful he would play a big part on the 2024 team as well, but an arm injury sustained in spring training put those plans on hold. Nearly two weeks after his initial injury, Moreta underwent UCL surgery, with an expected recovery time of 14-16 months.

He didn’t pitch anywhere in 2024 and was absent from spring training in 2025. In late April, Moreta was finally allowed to get on the mound again, embarking on a lengthy rehab assignment to get him back up to game speed.

Pittsburgh started him out in Low-A Bradenton on April 29th, where he tossed two scoreless innings. A week later, he was transferred to Triple-A Indianapolis to continue his rehab against the top rung of minor league baseball.

Fifth Avenue Sports did a check-in on Moreta’s rehab assignent a few weeks ago, and while his runs against have increased slightly, he still has a fine body of work in Triple-A.

Moreta pitched for Indianapolis on a rehab assignment from May 6th to June 15th, allowing five earned runs in 14.2 innings for a 3.07 ERA. Opponents slashed .200/.369/.340 against him when he was on the mound, hitting one home run.

If there was a critique over Moreta’s rehab assignment, it was his control. Though Moreta struck out 20 batters, he also walked 12 and plunked a pair. Only 58% of his pitches went for strikes, and if the opponent put the ball in play, they were batting .300 on him.

While the team never officially announced an extension of Moreta’s rehab, it looks like that’s what they did. Standard rehab assignment rules dictate that position players can be on one for a maximum 20 days and pitchers a maximum of 30 days.

But for arms coming off major surgery, like Tommy John or Moreta’s UCL surgery, teams can extend the rehab for an extra ten days if they want. An organization can actually do a ten day extension three different times for a pitcher, for a maximum of 60 days on a rehab assignment.

Moreta is gearing up harder than ever, with a June 15th appearance against the St. Paul Saints seeing him toss 30 pitches (his previous season high was 26, over a month ago).

But, perhaps the free pass issue has the Pirates a little concerned and wanting to see him gain more of that control back. That, and the fact that the Pirates aren’t in desperate need for help in the bullpen right away.

While some fans (myself included) are eager to see Moreta back up with the big club as soon as possible, it makes sense why the Pirates didn’t bring him back up on Monday.

Pittsburgh’s bullpen is performing really well right now. David Bednar has roared back from early season struggles, Dennis Santana is still a strong option, and the Pirates are even getting unexpected runs of dominance from players like Isaac Mattson.

Ryan Borucki is the only reliever that is truly struggling right now. The 31-year-old has a 5.18 ERA through 24.1 innings this season. In his last ten appearances, Borucki has been charged with three losses, while allowing ten hits, nine earned runs, and three home runs in 7.2 innings.

If there was a cut candidate, it’s Borucki. But, for as bad as Borucki has been against righty batters (who hit .372 against him with an OPS of 1.135), Borucki still has dominant stuff against lefties (who by comparison, bat .091 with a .320 OPS).

Plus, after the Pirates designated Joey Wentz for assignment, Borucki is one of only two lefties currently on the major league roster, alongside free agent signee Caleb Ferguson. Left-handers in the bullpen was a strength for this team heading into the year, but after another free agent signing in Tim Mayza landed on the 60-Day IL early in the year and Wentz was booted, it’s now down to two.

Swapping Borucki out for the right-handed Moreta doesn’t make a ton of sense for the Pirates, and probably something the team won’t do unless they absolutely need to.

Moreta will pitch in Pittsburgh at some point this season. Injuries are an unfortunate part of the game, but pitchers are often susceptible to them. If he’s not here in the next month or so, Moreta would certainly be here after the trade deadline, where a handful of Pirate relievers are expected to be dealt unless this season takes a massive swing in the other direction.

The Bank will be open soon enough.