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PITTSBURGH — The Pirates needed to make room in the starting rotation for Jared Jones, who will return to the mound on Friday night against the Minnesota Twins. The casualty was Carmen Mlodzinski, who will shift back to the bullpen after opening the season as a starting pitcher.
Mlodzinski met with the media following Thursday night’s loss to the Chicago Cubs to speak about the decision.
“Obviously, just excited to have Jared back with us,” Mlodzinski said. “I can honestly say I’m just still communicating with the organization and the people in my corner, whether that’s my family or my agency, about what is next. I really don’t have any comments after that.”
Mlodzinski made 11 appearances with the Pirates to begin the season — nine as a starting pitcher and two in a bulk relief role. The right-hander pitched well, going 4-3 with a 3.76 ERA.
“Proud of the work I’ve been able to do, kind of leave it at that,” he said.
Despite his early-season success, the Pirates made the decision to give his spot in the rotation to Jones, who is returning from last May’s right elbow surgery.
“Extremely difficult decision, conversation,” manager Don Kelly said of moving Mlodzinski back to a relief role. “I think at the end of the day, when we sit here and look at what is going to give us the best chance to win every single day, having as many options as we can in different areas.”
The Pirates used Mlodzinski as a starting pitcher to begin last season but optioned him to Triple-A after he posted a 5.67 ERA after nine starts. When he returned, Mlodzinski was used as an opener on occasion, but otherwise pitched exclusively out of the bullpen, and he ended the year by posting a 2.12 ERA over his final 25 appearances.
Mlodzinski began his career with the Pirates as a reliever, and he owned a 2.91 ERA through the first 75 appearances of his career between 2023-24.
While a relief role is a familiar one to Mlodzinski, it’s not one he’s overly-excited about joining once again.
“We had a conversation yesterday about it and I’m just not quite ready to share too many details right now,” he explained.
The Pirates have maintained that their main priority is to do what they feel is needed to put the team in the best position to win, even if it means making tough decisions.
After hearing Mlodzinski’s comments after the game, it’s clear he’s not thrilled with a decision that didn’t go in his favor.
The post Pirates’ Carmen Mlodzinski None Too Pleased About Moving Back to Bullpen appeared first on Pittsburgh Baseball Now.
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