BRADENTON, Fla. – Elias Diaz is experiencing lateral right elbow discomfort, per a Pirates press release. The current plan is to rest and receive treatments. He will be re-evaluated in about a week, and that will determine his return to playing.
Hopefully this is minor and doesn’t impact the start of his season. Diaz is one of the best defensive catchers in all of minor league baseball, in large part due to his elite arm. He’s also the top depth option for Francisco Cervelli and Chris Stewart. Both catchers stayed relatively healthy in 2015, but counting on that to happen again in 2016, with their injury histories, is being too optimistic. It’s very likely that Diaz would be needed at some point this season in Pittsburgh.
We’ll provide more updates on this situation when they come, which might be Wednesday during the next team injury update.
