Injuries have unfortunately been a common theme for the Pittsburgh Pirates this season. It looked like the team was finally getting healthy when two more injuries rocked the everyday lineup and rotation.

First, the Pirates placed All-Star pitcher Braxton Ashcraft on the injured list with right arm discomfort, and Rookie of the Year candidate Esmerlyn Valdez was quick to follow with an injury to his hamstring.

Pittsburgh general manager Ben Cherington gave an update over the weekend on the pair of injured players over the weekend.

The executive said Valdez suffered a “grade one or two” strain, which will keep him out for up to eight weeks.

Simply considering where the Pirates are at this point in the calendar, Cherington said the injury “is going to end his season.

The team’s focus now is helping him get healthy so Valdez can have as normal a winter as possible without any lingering effects from the injury heading into the 2027 campaign.

“The important thing now is we need to get him to a really good spot before the normal part of his offseason,” Cherington said.

“We’ll use the rest of the season and October to really make sure he’s in a good spot physically, so he can recover and have a good, productive, normal offseason and get ahead of that. He’s done enough on the field this year to tell us he has a chance to be part of a good, winning team next year. We’ve got to make sure he’s in a good physical position to do that.”

Valdez had a tremendous rookie season and even carried Pittsburgh’s offense at times during the summer months. The 22-year-old had a .855 OPS with 17 home runs in 72 games in 2026.

Cherington didn’t provide as much of a detailed update on Ashcraft's injury, only stating that “He’s pitched a lot this year,” Cherington said. “As does happen sometimes, pitchers go through things all year, and you manage it between starts.”

The executive isn’t wrong. This is Ashcraft’s first full season as a starting pitcher, and he blew past his previous career high in innings pitched months ago.

As it stands, he’s thrown 165.1 innings during the 2026 season.

The good news is that “there’s no evidence right now of any concerning structural issue in the elbow or shoulder.”

The big question facing both Ashcraft, the Pirates, and other players around baseball on the injured list is whether or not there’s enough time left in the season for him to recover, rehab, and be built up enough to get back on the mound.

If this is the end of the season for Ashcraft, he'd finish with a 3.65 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. 

An objectively good season, that could end on a disappointing end.