Jul 3, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Jace Peterson (14) throws to first base to completes a double play over the Pittsburgh Pirates pinch hitter right fielder Gregory Polanco (25) during the fifth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The Pittsburgh Pirates placed outfielder Gregory Polanco on the 10-day injured list and infielder/outfielder Phillip Evans on the 7-day concussion list prior to Tuesday’s game against the visiting Atlanta Braves.
Polanco, 29, was placed on the IL with an adductor strain. He is batting just .199 with nine home runs and 23 RBIs in 70 games.
The 28-year-old Evans is batting .208 with five homers and 15 RBIs in 57 games.
Pittsburgh recalled Cole Tucker from Triple-A Indianapolis and fellow infielder Rodolfo Castro from Double-A Altoona in corresponding moves.
Polanco has been struggling with the ailment and hasn’t started a game since June 29. He walked as a pinch hitter during Monday’s 11-1 rout of the Braves and was later unable to score from second on a single by Ke’Bryan Hayes. He was stranded at third.
“He could hit,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton told reporters Wednesday. “He was just having trouble running, which I think if you were at the game last night, the ball that was hit, he was scuffling to move. We just felt it was better to get him out and get him healthy.”
Evans was involved in a third-inning play in which he dove head-first into third while running the bases. He left the contest in the ninth and it was revealed afterward that he was in concussion protocol.
Tucker, 25, was 2-for-15 (.133) in eight games with the Pirates earlier this season. He has a .210 average with three homers and 22 RBIs in 101 games with the club over the past three seasons.
The 22-year-old Castro went 0-for-3 while making his big-league debut with the Pirates in the second game of a doubleheader against the Detroit Tigers on April 21. He is batting .306 with 11 homers and 40 RBIs in 49 games at Altoona.
–Field Level Media