The Pirates have announced that righty Ryan Vogelsong is headed to the 15-day DL after being diagnosed with facial fractures. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by fellow right-hander A.J. Schugel.
Vogelsong was struck by a pitch in the left eye area yesterday in what was one of the more frightening plays you’ll ever see on a baseball field. The team previously suggested that he had suffered injuries both to the eye and the surrounding bone. Fortunately, Vogelsong’s wife tweeted promising news last night about his general outlook, which was obviously much more important than his playing status.
Pittsburgh signed the 38-year-old to provide a swingman option and stabilize a staff that has some uncertainty. He’s done just that, providing 21 2/3 innings of 3.74 ERA pitching with 6.6 K/9 against 4.2 BB/9.
It’s obviously not clear at this point just what lies ahead for Vogelsong, but surely we’ll learn more in the coming days. MLBTR joins many others around the game in wishing the respected veteran a full and speedy recovery.