Pirates Dealt Big Blow with Recent Injury
In this story:
PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates have had a strong lineup in 2026, but one of their key members won't play for them for the next few games.
The Pirates placed right fielder/first baseman Ryan O'Hearn on the 10-day injured list with a right quad contusion. They reinstated outfielder Jake Mangum off the 10-day injured list as the corresponding move.
O'Hearn suffered the injury in the 6-0 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies at PNC Park on May 16, where he went for a pop-up in the top of the second inning and moved out of the way of a baserunner and felt pain in his right leg.
“I think it was the end of the second inning maybe," O'Hearn said about his injury postgame. "There was a pop-up around home plate and I was running in, came in and made the play. Kind of like looked down, noticed the batter/runner was in my way. Tried to make a move to my right, felt like the top of my quad/hip flexor grabbed on me big time and immediately knew, “That felt weird.”
"Went inside to the dugout, came out to hit, tried to jog after the pop fly. Tried to go back out for the inning. Every time I tried to do more than a walk or a slow-jog, it just felt like my leg was grabbing on me. So just went and got an MRI, waiting on the results. I’m optimistic. It’s frustrating. We’ll see.”
The Pirates would eventually take O'Hearn out in the top of the fourth inning, moving Jared Triolo from right field to first base and then having Nick Yorke take over in right field.
What O'Hearn Has Meant to the Pirates in 2026
The Pirates signed O'Hearn to a two-year, $29 million deal this offseason, making him the first free agent they signed to a multi-year deal since 2016 and the first position player free agent multi-year signing since 2015.
O'Hearn has been fantastic for the Pirates so far, slashing .289/.368/.459 for an OPS of .827 in 44 games prior to this injury, with 46 hits, six doubles, seven home runs, 29 RBI and 19 walks to 34 strikeouts.
He ranks second on the Pirates in batting average and OPS, tied for the second-most hits, third-best slugging percentage, third-most home runs, runs scored and RBI, fourth-best on-base percentage, fourth-most walks and tied for the fifth-most double, making him one of the better hitters on the taem.
O'Hearn is coming off a successful series vs. the Colorado Rockies at PNC Park, where he hit two home runs, his first two of May, and helped the Pirates win the series finale, 7-2, with a two-run home run in the bottom of the first inning.
Pittsburgh will hope that O'Hearn won't miss too much time and that they'll have one of their best bats back in the lineup.
Add us as a preferred source on Google
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.