With MLB active rosters expanding to 28 on Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Pirates added two players by recalling left-handed pitcher Brandon Eisert and selecting the contract of catcher Christian Bethancourt from Triple-A Indianapolis.
The 28-year-old Eisert has a 7.71 ERA, 2.00 WHIP and eight strikeouts against four walks in seven innings over seven appearances for the Pirates since being acquired from the Chicago White Sox, along with infielder Jacob Gonzalez, on July 10. Eisert pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings against Arizona on July 28, his most recent outing in the majors.
Eisert has fared far better at Indianapolis, with a 2.08 ERA, 0.54 WHIP, 18 strikeouts and an .093 batting average against (4 for 43) in 13 innings over 10 appearances.
“He’s been throwing the ball well,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “With Eisert, the Giants have a lot of left-handed batters in their lineup and on their team. We felt like it was a good opportunity to get another lefty up here against them.”
Bethancourt, who turns 35 on Wednesday, was acquired from the New York Yankees for cash considerations Aug. 19. He’s batting .270 with nine doubles, 14 home runs, 45 RBIs and an .811 OPS in 67 minor-league games split between the Chicago Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate in Iowa (59 games) and the Yankees’ in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (eight games) this season.
To make room on the roster for Bethancourt, the Pirates moved catcher/first baseman Endy Rodriguez from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL. Rodriguez underwent season-ending surgery to repair the labrum in his left hip last week. Kelly said the Pirates wanted to add a third catcher behind Henry Davis and Rafael Flores Jr.
Bethancourt has been on the Pirates’ major-league taxi squad since his acquisition and has played in 428 career MLB games split between Atlanta (2013-15), San Diego (2016-17), Oakland (2022), Tampa Bay (2022-23), Miami (2024) and Chicago Cubs (2024). His next game would mark his first MLB game since catching the Cubs’ season finale Sept. 29, 2024, against the Cincinnati Reds.
“We’ve been blessed with some good arms at the catching position with Henry and Flo, but he’s going to add on to that,” said Pirates second baseman Brandon Lowe, who played with Bethancourt in Tampa Bay. “He’s got an absolute Howitzer behind the plate. He’s got the years of experience to bring some veteran presence behind the plate with pitch calls.”
