Pittsburgh Pirates' Jared Jones talks about where he is in his recovery process after undergoing elbow surgery.
When Jared Jones was making his way through the Pittsburgh Pirates’ farm system, he showed the potential to be an ace of a rotation and be one of the top starters in MLB.
Unfortunately, the Pirates didn’t get that version of him in 2025, after the right-hander was forced to undergo surgery to repair a UCL sprain in May after an injury during spring training.
The bad news is that Jones’ initial timetable for recovery was set at 10-12 months when he had the procedure at the end of May, which means he very likely won’t be ready for Opening Day. But the good news is that Jones said he feels good and that his recovery is going well, as he expected.
“I'm feeling pretty good right now. Haven't had a pretty big hiccup yet, and I'm very grateful for that. It's been pretty smooth,” Jones said in a recent interview.
“Just getting back into everything and starting to throw again and getting off the mound, everything feels great, and [I] like how it's coming out the hand. Getting ready to pitch again is what I'm looking forward to most here.”
Sep 20, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Jared Jones (37) reacts on the field before the game against the Athletics at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn ImagesThe fact that Jones said he hasn’t experienced any setbacks yet is an incredibly encouraging sign for him, but it is important to remain cautiously optimistic, especially considering how risky and complicated the recovery from elbow procedures historically can be.
Before the injury and surgery, Jones showed a ton of potential in his rookie season in 2024. In 22 starts, he had a 4.14 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, a fastball velocity of 97.3 mph, and was above average in chase, whiff, and strikeout rate.
Of course, it’s always a mystery how a pitcher will return after missing a full season due to elbow injuries, but Jones continued to talk about how great Pittsburgh’s pitching development team is, which should give him hope that the staff can get him back to full health.
The Pirates already have one of the top starting rotations in all of baseball, which should take some pressure off Jones to be the best version of himself right away. But when, and if, he does return to that elite level, Pittsburgh will have one of the top one-two-three starting punches in all of baseball.
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