Pirates Relief Pitcher Suffers Injury Setback
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen has struggled this season and they've lost another one of their arms.
The Pirates placed right-handed pitcher Wilber Dotel on the 15-day injured list with a right lat muscle strain. They have recalled right-handed pitcher Brandan Bidois, who they opitoned to Triple-A Indianapolis just a day prior on June 12.
It's the first time that Dotel has gone on the injured list since 2023 and he's remained relatively healthy since signing with the Pirates back in October 2020 for $65,000.
The Pirates bullpen now features right-handers in Bidois, Isaac Mattson, who the Pirates also recalled from Triple-A, Carmen Mlodzinski, Yohan Ramírez and Dennis Santana, plus left-handed pitchers in Mason Montgomery, Evan Sisk and Gregory Soto.
Wilber Dotel's Second Stint with the Pirates
Dotel joined the Pirates for his second MLB stint this season back on May 20 and posted an 8.49 ERA over six outing, with 11 earned runs allowed over 11.2 innings pitched, plus 15 strikeouts to six walks.
He had great success early on, with just one earned run allowed over his first 10 innings and four outings, with three consecutive outings throwing three scoreless innings out of the bullpen and 13 strikeouts to just three walks.
He did this from the sixth inning to the eighth inning in the 2-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on May 25, earning his first MLB victory, and the 6-5 win over the Minnesota Twins on May 29, both at PNC Park, then against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park in a 10-6 win on June 2.
Dotel then struggled in his past two outings at PNC Park, against the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 9 and the Miami Marlins on June 13.
He gave up five hits, a walk, a home run and six earned runs while getting no outs in the seventh inning against the Dodgers, who broke a 2-2 tie and ended up defeating the Pirates 12-3.
Dotel gave up four earned runs over 1.2 innings vs. the Marlins in the seventh inning, which the road team used to win 8-3 after also breaking a 2-2 tie.
It was a disappointing two appearances for Dotel, who had previously dominated out of the bullpen as a middle reliever and in a bulk role for the Pirates.
The Pirates will hope that Dotel returns healthy from this injury and back to his best self, as they'lll need his strong outings out of the bullpen going forward.
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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.