X-rays negative after frustrated Jones exits following liner off right elbow

Pirates right-hander Jared Jones screamed in anger and pain when leaving the mound at the end of the third inning of Sunday’s 8-6 win over the Rockies at Coors Field.

Jones took an 87.9 mph comebacker off his right elbow, heading for the dugout and not returning after 45 pitches. Jones was activated from the 60-day injured list on May 29 after undergoing surgery to repair the right UCL in May of 2025. Jones was told by the Pirates' medical staff that if the ball hit any lower on his elbow, the bone would’ve shattered.

“It doesn’t feel great, but kind of the best-case scenario where nothing is too messed up in there,” Jones said. “I feel like [I was] a little overdramatic, but getting hit in the elbow five starts off of surgery kind of pisses me off. But, everything is fine.”

Against the Rockies, Jones started hot, needing just seven pitches to retire the side in order in the first. He loaded the bases with no outs in the second but allowed only one run to cross. Jones' day was done after the third inning, replaced by Yohan Ramírez.

The Pirates salvaged the final game of the series, despite Jones’ injury. Initial images on his right elbow read as negative, and he’ll be reevaluated on Monday in Pittsburgh.

“When you come back off of injury like that, and then you get hit like that again, the worst thoughts go through your mind,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “ ... Working hard to get back off of that is a long road, and for him to take a ball off the elbow, glad to hear that it sounds pretty good right now.”

A two-run homer from Nick Gonzalez staked Pittsburgh to a 2-1 lead in the fourth, with Ramírez taking over on the hill to begin the bottom of the frame. The Pirates added to their lead in the top of the fifth with Jared Triolo driving in Jake Mangum on a double to right field. The Pirates added two more in the sixth from the bottom of the order.

Ramírez excelled after allowing a hit-by-pitch and a walk to the first two batters he faced, retiring five in a row. Evan Sisk entered with a four-run cushion in the bottom of the sixth and kept the clean slate going. Bryan Reynolds then hammered a three-run shot in the seventh to build a seven-run lead.

Dennis Santana allowed a three-run homer to TJ Rumfield in the eighth and Gregory Soto let two score in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough for the Rockies to make a miraculous comeback.

Attention turns to the long-term health of Jones. The Pirates flipped Carmen Mlodzinski into the bullpen to make room for the 24-year-old Jones to retake a top spot in the starting rotation. Pittsburgh is already without the injured Konnor Griffin and Oneil Cruz in the field. The loss of Jones from the rotation would only make things harder. For now, all indications point to an ideal outcome for Jones after the immediate scare.