Waiting on Wandy

The Pirates announced this weekend that Wandy Rodriguez will be activated off the disabled list at some point to start on Thursday in Milwaukee, for the finale of the team’s three game series.

His numbers in two rehab starts with Class AA Altoona did not exactly shout success.

In two starts, Rodriguez went 8 2/3 innings, producing a 10.38 ERA, with 11 hits, 11 runs (10 earned). He gave up three home runs.

May 1 against Erie: 3.1 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, 3 K.

May 6 vs. Bowie: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 2 HR, 3 BB, 4 K. 

Is he ready?

General manager Neal Huntington cautioned on Sunday in his weekly chat with reporters, that those numbers could be deceiving, simply because the outings are based more on execution of pitches and less on winning.

“Yes and no. They’re indicative of some mistakes. He got hit hard," said Huntington. "But within those innings are some good innings where the crispness was back, the breaking ball was sharp, the curveball was effective, the fastball was down. At the same time he also got hit."

"Sometimes a big leaguer on rehab is just a diff adrenaline level, a different intensity level, it’s almost like a spring training outing for them. They’re getting their pitches in. They’re getting their feel in. They may throw a breaking ball when they typically may throw a fastball. The may try to do something, just to see if they have got the freshness to run a fastball in on a Double-A hitter. And for the Double-A hitter it’s his World Series. He’s facing a big leaguer and he’s as locked in as he’s going to be."

"You’d like to see everybody have success every time they step on a baseball field but different guys approach it different ways."