The Pirates have placed C/1B Jeff Clement on the 15-day disabled list with left knee irritation. He has played in 54 games for the Pirates this year and he is 29 of 144 (.201 avg, .605 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 7 homers and 12 RBIs. The Pirates have called up 26-year old lefty reliever Justin Thomas to replace Clement on the active roster. Thomas pitched in 7 games (0 starts) earlier this year for the Pirates and he is 0-0 with a 6.23 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. The Pirates hope Thomas will be better this time around.

The Pirates have lost 22-year old righty swinging outfielder Gorkys Hernandez for the rest of the season due to a fractured right ring finger. Hernandez played in 92 games in AA-ball this year and he was 98 of 368 (.266 avg, .668 OPS) with 45 runs scored, 2 homers, 26 RBIs and 17 stolen bases. The Pirates were probably going to call up Hernandez when rosters expanded in September but his injury will prevent that from happening.

The Pirates have placed 29-year old switch hitting catcher Ryan Doumit on the 15-day disabled list with a concussion. Doumit has played in 80 games for the Pirates this year and he is 72 of 279 (.258 avg, .741 OPS) with 26 runs scored, 8 homers and 32 RBIs. 30-year old righty swinging Eric Krantz and 27-year old switch hitting Jason Jaramillo will share the catching chores until Doumit is ready to return to action. Krantz has played in 3 games for the Pirates since his promotion and he is 2 of 12 (.167 avg, .397 OPS) with 2 runs scored and 1 RBI. Jaramillo played in 24 games for the Pirates earlier this season and he was 11 of 67 (.164 avg, .489 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 1 homer and 6 RBIs. Look for the Pirates to split the P.T. about even between Krantz and Jaramillo.

22-year old righty swinging catcher Tony Sanchez suffered a broken jaw when he was hit in the face with a pitch. He’s having surgery today and he could miss the remainder of the season. Sanchez was the Pirates’ #3 prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. Sanchez has played in 59 games in A-ball this year and he is 65 of 207 (.314 avg, .870 OPS) with 31 runs scored, 4 homers and 35 RBIs. He has now played in 107 games in his two years in the minors and he is 120 of 385 (.312 avg, .906 OPS) with 64 runs scored, 11 homers and 83 RBIs. Hopefully this injury doesn’t scar Sanchez as the Pirates have plans for him in the near future.

The Pirates have placed 27-year old lefty starting pitcher Zach Duke on the 15-day disabled list with a strained muscle in his left elbow. Duke has pitched in 14 games (all starts) for the Pirates so far this season and he is 3-8 with a 5.49 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP. He has given up 111 hits (12 homers) in only 80 1/3 innings so far this season for the Pirates. As bad as Duke has pitched this season the alternatives for the Pirates might even be worse.