Pirates injury report: Colin Moran, Phillip Evans close to getting back on the bases soon

Only four days after the Pittsburgh Pirates lost first baseman Colin Moran to the 10-day injured list with a left groin strain, replacement Phillip Evans pulled up lame with a left hamstring strain.

Their respective recoveries from those injuries are almost in lockstep.

Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that both players are doing position-specific work, although that’s more complicated for Evans considering he plays multiple spots.

Evans, however, is a step ahead of Moran in his return. Tomczyk said the Pirates are preparing Evans to run the bases soon, with Moran expected to join him by the weekend.

“He is maybe a day or two behind Phil in regards to running,” Tomczyk said of Moran. “See how they respond to the workload of running the bases and have discussions about the next steps for both of those gentlemen.”

Tomczyk addressed the Pirates’ laundry list of injuries, including several players on rehabilitation assignments with Triple-A Indianapolis.

• Right-hander Chad Kuhl (shoulder) made his second start Tuesday, allowing one run on one hit while throwing 64 pitches in 3 1/3 innings.

“Early signs, early indications are there are no signs of symptoms, no soreness,” Tomczyk said.

Both Tomczyk and Pirates manager Derek Shelton said they will talk with Kuhl before deciding whether he will make another rehab start or be ready to rejoin the major league rotation Sunday.

• Third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes (left wrist), out since April 4, is 3 for 9 with a double and a home run in three games in Indianapolis and has shown “no issues of any wrist symptoms.” Hayes is eligible to come off the 60-day IL on June 3.

“He’s progressing nicely,” Shelton said. “I think now we’re just at the point now it’s just getting him back in baseball shape, so when he gets back, he can play. Making sure his legs aren’t heavy, making sure his back’s not heavy, his core is OK, but all signs have been positive and we’re looking forward to continuing with the progression.”

• Left-handed reliever Austin Davis has appeared in five games and “continues to recover well and have no issues with the forearm.”

• Right-hander Jose Soriano, the top pick in the Rule 5 Draft who is returning from Tommy John surgery, is pitching for the Low-A Bradenton Marauders and “building up his in-game pitching volume.”

“Early signs of his pitch development and pitch recovery is very positive,” Tomczyk said.

• Left-hander Trevor Cahill (left calf strain) threw a side session Wednesday and is showing early signs that he has “recovered well.”

• Outfielder Ka’ai Tom (left wrist) has resumed all hitting and on-field activities and is “responding well to that workload” and “making nice strides in his rehab.”

• Left-hander Steven Brault (left lat strain) has progressed to throwing 105 feet and is expected to increase to 120 feet by the end of the week.

“He’s making nice strides in his rehab,” Tomczyk said.

• Outfielder Travis Swaggerty, the Pirates’ No. 1 pick in 2018, was examined by team physicians on Friday after suffering a dislocation of his right shoulder with Indianapolis.

“So that means the joint came out of the socket and was successfully reduced,” Tomczyk said. “Both surgical and non-surgical options were discussed with Travis. At this time, Travis is still learning about what each of them looks like, and once we have more definitive knowledge, we’ll definitely share that new information with you.”

• Tomczyk said infielder Nick Gonzalez suffered a “very freak accident” while playing for High-A Greensboro last week.

“He was playing defense in a rundown, and he just landed awkwardly on that finger, and he sustained the injury to the volar plate,” Tomczyk said. “So it wasn’t a true avulsion fracture of ligament off the bone, it was the actual volar plate that did get fractured. That will require a short period of splinting and rest, and as we released last week, we anticipate full baseball activities in four-to-six weeks.”