Pirates starter Bailey Falter lands on 15-day injured list with left triceps tendonitis

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Starter Bailey Falter was placed on the 15-day injured list with left triceps tendonitis by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday.

The 27-year-old left-hander lasted two innings on Saturday, allowing three runs on five hits and leaving with the bases loaded and no outs in the third inning of a 5-2 loss to the New York Mets. Falter is 4-7 with a 4.08 ERA this season, his first full one in Pittsburgh after being acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies on Aug. 1, 2023.

“I just obviously wanted to try to stay in the game for as much as possible, just to give the bullpen a little break,” Falter said after the game Saturday. “But I noticed a little discomfort in the warmup pitches in the third. Didn’t really throw too many strikes. It kind of flared up after that and I kind of just lost feel for (the strike zone).”

Falter is the second Pirates starter to land on the IL in the past four days. Rookie right-hander Jared Jones (5-6, 3.56) left five innings into his start on Wednesday, going on the 15-day list because of a right lat strain the next day.

Pittsburgh, which has alternated wins and losses its past seven games, recalled outfielder Joshua Palacios from Triple-A Indianapolis when Jones was shut down.

Right-hander Brent Honeywell Jr. was selected from Indianapolis in a corresponding move to Foster on Sunday. Left-hander Justin Bruihl was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster.

Honeywell was 1-3 with a 4.85 ERA, seven saves and 33 strikeouts in 31 appearances in Triple-A this season.

“I want to win,” Honeywell said. “I think we all want to win. I think it’s the biggest thing to me. It’s a good club, man. I think the main thing is keeping them going where they’re at right now. Just kind of move right into being a cog in the machine and help them win.

“I think the biggest thing is guys do come down (to Triple-A), go up. That’s just how baseball is. But the biggest thing is it’s always good to see guys when they come down, but it’s also like, ‘Eh, I wish you were up there.’ We talk about it. Winning first, I think that’s the biggest thing.”