The Pirates optioned Burrows (elbow) to the minor leagues Friday, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Burrows had his 2023 season cut short when he underwent Tommy John surgery in late April. The right-hander will start the 2024 season in the minors and look to work his way up to the majors.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Undergoes Tommy John surgery
Rotowire
Burrows underwent surgery Wednesday to repair damage to the UCL in his right elbow, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.
It was Tommy John surgery, per a followup report Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com, and Burrows is expected to be sidelined for the next 14-to-16 months. The 23-year-old had logged just two starts this season at Triple-A Indianapolis before his UCL gave out. He was an 11th-round pick in the 2018 First-Year Player Draft.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Hits Triple-A IL
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Triple-A Indianapolis placed Burrows (forearm) on its 7-day injured list April 11.
Burrows' move to the IL was fully expected after Pirates general manager Ben Cherington disclosed that the right-hander suffered a forearm injury in his second outing of the season for Indianapolis back on April 8. The 23-year-old is without a definitive timeline for a return.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Injures forearm in Triple-A start
Rotowire
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Burrows was diagnosed with a forearm injury after exiting his start Saturday at Triple-A Indianapolis, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.
Cherington added that Burrows' elbow is stable, but the forearm issue still could be enough of a concern to keep the 23-year-old right-hander on the shelf for at least a couple turns through the rotation. Burrows worked 6.2 innings between his first two starts with Indianapolis, giving up two earned runs on four hits and two walks while striking out three.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Optioned to Triple-A
Rotowire
Burrows was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday.
Burrows has made two Grapefruit League appearances as of Tuesday, and he allowed two runs on four hits with one strikeout and no walks over three innings. The right-hander is considered one of the better arms in the Pittsburgh system and likely will make his MLB debut at some point in 2023.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Adding slider
Rotowire
Burrows is incorporating a slider into his pitch mix, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Burrows is among the top pitching prospects in the Pirates' organization, and he already possesses an above-average curveball. The slider is still a work in progress, though he has thrown the pitch eight times across three innings of work this spring. Burrows is extremely unlikely to break camp with the team, but he'll be among the top candidates to get the call when the Pirates need reinforcements in the rotation this season.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Joins 40-man roster
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Burrows was added to the Pirates' 40-man roster Tuesday, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Burrows split time between Double-A and Triple-A in 2022, putting up a 4.01 ERA and 1.21 WHIP over 94.1 innings on the season. The 23-year-old righty struggled in Triple-A, however, so Burrows will likely need more seasoning in Indianapolis before the Pirates seriously consider bringing him to their big-league roster.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Reinstated from injured list
Rotowire
Burrows (shoulder) was reinstated from the 7-day injured list at Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Burrows hasn't pitched in a game in a month, and it's not yet clear whether he'll pitch in Wednesday's regular-season finale at Indianapolis. Regardless of whether he takes the mound Wednesday, it appears as though he's moved past his shoulder injury ahead of the offseason.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Resumes throwing
Rotowire
Burrows (shoulder) has recently progressed to throwing from approximately 120 feet, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Burrows has been unavailable for nearly a month due to his shoulder injury, but it's encouraging he's been cleared to resume throwing. The right-hander has also been throwing off a mound, and the Pirates hope that he'll be able to return to make another start at Triple-A Indianapolis prior to the end of the regular season.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Managing shoulder injury
Rotowire
Burrows is on Triple-A Indianapolis' 7-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Burrows has a 4.10 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 42:11 K:BB over 41.2 innings for Indianapolis this season but has been unavailable the past couple weeks due to the shoulder issue. The 22-year-old has yet to be ruled out for the season, though it's unclear when he's expected back on the mound.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: Unlucky in Triple-A
Rotowire
Burrows has a 4.93 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 34:9 K:BB through 34.2 innings with Triple-A Indianapolis.
After a dominant showing in Double-A, the 22-year-old hasn't been nearly so successful at the higher level. In fact, he's only managed to finish five innings one time in nine appearances (seven starts), and his strikeout rate has dipped quite a bit (from 11.9 K/9 to 8.8). That said, Burrows hasn't had great luck in Triple-A -- he's allowed a .327 BABIP while posting just a 61.9 percent strand rate, so he's due for some positive regression. With two very good pitches (a mid-to-high-90s fastball and a sharp curveball), Burrows has a floor as a high-leverage bullpen arm, but he still has a chance to be a big-league starter if he can develop his changeup into a plus offering.
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Pirates' Mike Burrows: One step closer to majors
Rotowire
Burrows was promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, Adam Babetski of the Altoona Mirror reports.
The 22-year-old righty posted a 2.94 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 69:19 K:BB in 52 innings across 12 starts at Double-A. Burrows has been fantastic for most of the season and will make his Triple-A debut Sunday.
