Pirates Send Pitcher Back Down to Minors
In this story:
PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates sent a pitcher back down to the minors, they recently recalled.
The Pirates announced that they optioned right-handed pitcher Hunter Stratton to Triple-A Indianapolis after the last game vs. the Cubs on May 1, as they made room on the 26-man active roster to recall infielder Liover Peguero, who was at Indianapolis.
We have recalled INF Liover Peguero from Triple-A Indianapolis, and optioned RHP Hunter Stratton to Indianapolis following yesterday’s game to make room on the 26-man active roster.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) May 2, 2025
Pirates manager Derek Shelton spoke pregame before the start of the series vs. the San Diego Padres on May 2 that shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa is dealing with lower body pain and will miss his second straight start.
They brought up Peguero, so that they'd have someone else at shortstop and weren't lacking depth at that position.
“Yeah I think right now, I mean, you guys have seen, IKF’s not in the lineup again tonight," Shelton said. "He’s dealing with some lower body stuff and I think we just wanted to make sure that we had a situation where we had another shortstop here right now. We knew that Stratt was probably not going to be available today. So we just want to make sure that we’re protected."
The Pirates called Stratton up on April 29, ahead of the start of the series vs. the Chicago Cubs, as they placed right-handed pitcher Dennis Santana on the Major League Bereavement/Family Medical Emergency List.
Shelton also added that Santana is not on the active roster as of now, as Sanatana "just got back" and is "dealing with the personal stuff."
Stratton made two appearances vs. the Cubs, finishing with 1.2 innings pitched and a 21.60 ERA.
He came in the top seventh inning of the 9-0 loss on April 29, and and immediately allowed a two-run home run to Cubs designated hitter Seiya Suzuki, with one earned run attributed to him.
Stratton pitched in the top of the ninth inning on May 1, and would allow back-to-back singles to shortstop Dansby Swanson and pinch hitter Jon Berti.
He then allowed a double to left fielder Ian Happ, scoring Swanson and making it 6-3. Stratton did get two more outs, but then allowed a single to first baseman Michael Busch, scoring both Berti and Happ and increasing the Cubs' lead to 8-3, which they held on for, giving the Pirates another series defeat.
The Pirates bullpen for their upcoming game consists of right-handed pitchers in Chase Shugart, Colin Holderman, Kyle Nicolas and David Bednar, plus left-handed pitchers in Caleb Ferguson, Ryan Borucki and Joey Wentz.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.