Pirates pitcher Jared Jones takes big step in return by beginning light throwing program

Jared Jones took a major step in his recovery from surgery on his right elbow when the Pittsburgh Pirates right-handed starting pitcher was cleared to begin a light throwing program.

Jones, who had an InternalBrace procedure in May, was cleared after meeting with orthopedic surgeon Dr. Keith Meister on Tuesday. That allowed Jones to graduate from doing one- and two-handed plyometrics and start throwing from 45-60 feet and build volume.

“Very encouraged with his progress, very encouraged with the overall range of motion and strength,” Pirates senior director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said. “He’s on track for our original projection of returning to game activity around 10 to 12 months.”

Right-handed reliever Justin Lawrence (elbow) could be close to returning. Lawrence has had five rehabilitation appearances between Low-A Bradenton and Triple-A Indianapolis and is scheduled to pitch in back-to-back outings later this week.

If Lawrence recovers well, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington, manager Don Kelly, pitching coach Oscar Marin and director of pitching development Jeremy Bleich will determine the next step.

“He’s doing well performance-wise, and the velocity and all the metrics have returned to how they were prior to the injury,” Tomczyk said. “Most importantly, we believe he’s recovering good and pitching at a high level.”

Outfielder Jack Suwinski, on the 10-day injured list with a right groin strain, has advanced to low-level running on an anti-gravity treadmill and “responded well to that,” Tomczyk said.

Suwinski is doing light hitting and rehabilitation exercises.

“He’s making some nice progress,” Tomczyk said. “Still have some obstacles and hurdles to overcome. Some benchmarks, if you must, from a strength perspective and then, obviously, getting outside and running. But he is making some nice progress.”

The Pirates got bad news with a pair of players with shoulder injuries. Outfielder Ronny Simon, who dislocated his left shoulder while sliding head-first into home plate Friday at Boston, will require surgery to repair a torn labrum. Infielder/outfielder Enmanuel Valdez, who had season-ending surgery on his left shoulder in May, was expected to be cleared to hit, but Dr. Jeffrey Dugas decided it was more advantageous to spend more time strengthening the shoulder for the offseason.

Right-handed starter Thomas Harrington has returned to the IL at Triple-A Indianapolis after feeling the right groin grab again on the 15th pitch of his most recent outing Aug. 28. Tomczyk said subsequent exams and imaging showed a moderate strain to that groin area. Harrington spent time on the IL with a groin injury in mid-August.

“He is actually feeling good and playing catch out to 90 feet, but we’re taking it day-by-day with him,” Tomczyk said. “Too early to make a projection of return just yet.”

In other Indianapolis news, infielder/outfielder Billy Cook (hand) is scheduled to visit Dr. Peter Tang next week for an examination on his injury.