Pirates assistant GM Steve Sanders discusses statuses for Endy Rodriguez, Joey Bart

Pittsburgh Pirates assistant general manager Steve Sanders did not definitively say catcher Endy Rodriguez’s 2025 season is over.

But Sanders and the Pirates are bracing for such a possibility, with Rodriguez transferred to the 60-day injured list Friday as a result of right elbow inflammation.

Manager Don Kelly recently offered an update on the 25-year-old Rodriguez, indicating he’d received a second opinion on his elbow from Dodgers team physician Dr. Neal ElAttrache and will get a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection.

From there, it’ll be four weeks of rest for Rodriguez, who missed all of 2024 because of Tommy John surgery and has navigated an injury-plagued season this year.

Filling in for general manager Ben Cherington on 93.7 FM on Sunday afternoon, Sanders acknowledged the possibility that Rodriguez could be done for 2025.

“Nothing’s changed,” Sanders said. “I think just as we evaluated with the PRP and the short-term, no-throw (diagnosis) — just kind of projecting his timeline out, we pushed it into a place where a 60-day (injured list stint) felt appropriate, given the time it’ll take for him to build back up. I certainly feel for Endy. He had worked really, really hard to get back, battled through some of the stuff with the finger earlier in the year and this is unfortunate.

“But all the confidence in the world, especially seeing how he went through his last rehab and how he’s going to attack the next few weeks. Confident he’s going to get back as soon as he can. As far as the year, I would never want to project that far out. We’re certainly not ruling anything out. Our goal and Endy’s goal is to get healthy and get back as soon as possible. Certainly hopeful that’s at some point this year, but ultimately, we’ll do whatever’s best for Endy.”

Rodriguez has appeared in 18 games this season, slashing .173/.246/.250 with no home runs, four doubles and two RBIs, splitting time at catcher and first base.

In mid-April, Rodriguez suffered a laceration on his right hand that sidelined him for about six weeks.

Sanders also provided an update on fellow catcher Joey Bart, who is on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis.

Bart, 28, suffered a concussion behind the plate May 27 in Arizona and was replaced mid-game by Henry Davis.

Landing on the seven-day injured list soon after, Bart has been going through MLB concussion protocol and conferring with Pirates medical officials since then.

Per Sanders, clearing protocol was a prerequisite to begin a rehab assignment.

With Bart cleared to play, it is now up to him and the Pirates to determine when he’ll rejoin the big-league club.

Entering Sunday afternoon, Bart had appeared in four games with the Indians, batting .200 with two RBIs.

In 44 games with the Pirates this year, Bart is slashing .240/.347/.308 with one home run, five doubles and 11 RBIs.

“He’s doing really well,” Sanders said. “He’s progressing well. He caught nine innings (Saturday), he’s scheduled to catch (for the Indians on Sunday), so we’ll re-evaluate after the game today and see where he’s at. But believe he’s getting close. He’s gotten some good at-bats, some time behind the plate and we’re certainly excited to get him back in the lineup here at the big-league level as soon as he’s ready.”