The Pittsburgh Pirates’ first moves of the 2019 season Thursday were not what the front office had in mind for Opening Day. The Pirates placed seven players, including starting right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall and starting pitcher Jordan Lyles, on the injured list prior to their game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park.
Chisenhall, who was signed in the off-season from the Cleveland Indians to fill in while Gregory Polanco recovers from left shoulder surgery, was hit by a pitch in Houston on Monday. The Pirates placed him on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to Tuesday, with a right index finger fracture. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported Chisenhall will miss four to six weeks.
Because of these two placements, the Pirates officially selected the contracts of Melky Cabrera, who's now the starting right fielder, as well as another outfielder, J.B. Shuck, and Francisco Liriano. Only Shuck hadn't been told he'd made the team. Also, Steven Brault will pitch from the pen while Lyles gets stretched out.
Melky Cabrera was set to get the nod in right field in the Pirates' opener in Cincinnati on Thursday. The Pirates signed Chisenhall to a one-year, $2.75 million deal in the offseason to play right field until Gregory Polanco was ready to return in late April. Polanco underwent surgery in September to repair a dislocated left shoulder and labrum injury.
Chisenhall was hitting just .206 in spring training in 14 games. He's a career .268 hitter in his eight years in the major leagues, all with Cleveland.
Being out a month right from the jump is definitely unfortunate for Chisenhall, who played in only 29 games last season for his former Cleveland Indians and had a minimal impact on their season. In fact, the 30-year-old Pirate has not played close to a full season since 2016, when he knocked in 57 RBIs and hit .286. This hand injury is definitely going to hamper his ability to get rolling for the Pirates lineup alongside slugging newcomer Jung Ho Kang.
