Pittsburgh Pirates DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

The Pittsburgh Pirates activated left-hander Marco Gonzales (forearm) from the 60-day injured list on Friday and designated right-hander Brent Honeywell for assignment in a corresponding move to make room for Gonzales on the active roster. Gonzales will immediately return to the starting rotation and take the hill in an excellent matchup on the road against the Chicago White Sox. The 32-year-old southpaw has been out since April with a left-forearm strain and struggled in his only two minor-league rehab appearances with a 6.14 ERA in 7 1/3 innings, so although the matchup is a great one, he'll still be a pretty risky streaming option in deeper fantasy leagues in his first start back in the big leagues. Before his injury early on, Gonzales allowed only five earned runs on 15 hits (one homer) while walking five and striking out 11 in 17 innings in just three starts.

The Pittsburgh Pirates reinstated closer David Bednar (oblique) from the 15-day injured list on Friday and optioned right-hander Ryder Ryan to Triple-A Indianapolis in a corresponding move to make room for Bednar on the active roster. Bednar will return to the Pirates' bullpen after missing around three weeks with an oblique strain. The 29-year-old could be eased back into late-inning, high-leverage situations, but eventually he'll retain primary closing duties for the Bucs, with veteran left-hander Aroldis Chapman returning to a setup role. Bednar tossed a scoreless innings in just one minor-league rehab outing with Double-A Altoona earlier this week and was deemed ready to come off the IL. The two-time All-Star has struggled to a 5.17 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in his 34 relief outings in 2024, but he also has 16 saves after posting a league-high 39 saves in 2023.

Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo, the manager of the National League All-Stars this year, announced on the Dan Patrick Show on Friday that Pittsburgh Pirates rookie right-hander Paul Skenes will start the All-Star game next Tuesday. Skenes will become just the fifth rookie hurler in MLB history to have started an All-Star game, joining Hideo Nomo (1995), Fernando Valenzuela (1981), Mark Fidrych (1976) and Dave Stenhouse (1962). But Skenes' 11 starts will tie Fidrych for the fewest in a career entering an All-Star start. The former LSU star tossed seven no-hit innings while striking out 11 in a win over the division-rival Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday to lower his ERA to 1.90 with 89 strikeouts through his first 11 MLB starts. It's the fifth-most strikeouts through 11 starts in big-league history since 1901. Yeah, Skenes is pretty special.

Pittsburgh Pirates rookie starter Paul Skenes threw seven hitless and shutout innings, earning a win Thursday against the Milwaukee Brewers while striking out 11 hitters. Skenes was removed at 99 pitches, giving way to Colin Holderman to pitch the eighth. Jake Bauers broke up the no-hit bid with a single in the eighth inning. Skenes runs his record to 6-0 with a 1.90 ERA, a .92 WHIP, and 89 strikeouts in 66 innings. By any measure, he has been dominant since coming to the major leagues in mid-May. The rookie star may pitch next in the upcoming All-Star game next Tuesday.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (hamstring) is back in the team's starting lineup for Thursday's series finale against the division-rival Milwaukee Brewers, playing shortstop and batting third against Brewers right-hander Aaron Civale. Fantasy managers will want to get Cruz back into their starting lineups. The 25-year-old was pulled early from Monday's game with hamstring soreness and missed each of the last two games as a precaution. The 6-foot-7, 215-pound Dominican shortstop has one of the fastest swings in baseball and has gone 8-for-24 (.333) with two long balls, a double, five RBI, a stolen base and four runs in seven games to begin the month of July. Through 82 games in 2024, Cruz is just three home runs shy of tying his career-high of 17 round-trippers, which he set in 2022 in 87 games.