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Francisco Liriano Will Miss Start Due to Birth of Daughter, Sadler to Take His Place

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The Pittsburgh Pirates are already tapping into their starting pitching depth at the Triple-A level, although the reason was unexpected. Francisco Liriano will miss his start on Sunday due to the birth of his daughter. So rather than an analysis of when Liriano could return (which will be Wednesday), a simple congratulations are in order.

Casey Sadler will make the start on Sunday in Liriano’s place. Sadler hasn’t pitched for Indianapolis yet this season, and wasn’t on their Opening Day roster. It was originally assumed that he would just be added in time to make his start this weekend, but obviously the Pirates knew he could be needed and held him back.

This will be Sadler’s first Major League start. He made six appearances out of the bullpen last year, and was used sporadically, getting most of his time in mop up situations. He’s a sinkerball heavy pitcher who works primarily off the fastball. When the command of his sinker is on, he can be dominant and extremely efficient. His results should play up in Pittsburgh with the strong infield defense and the defensive shifts.

Updated 6:05 PM: The Pirates have made this move official, placing Liriano on the paternity list and recalling Sadler. By placing Liriano on the paternity list, the Pirates don’t need to remove a player from the 25-man roster to add Sadler for Sunday’s game.

Tim Williams
Tim Williams
Tim is the owner, producer, editor, and lead writer of PiratesProspects.com. He has been running Pirates Prospects since 2009, becoming the first new media reporter and outlet covering the Pirates at the MLB level in 2011 and 2012. His work can also be found in Baseball America, where he has been a contributor since 2014 and the Pirates' correspondent since 2019.

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