CHICAGO -- The Pirates’ offense is receiving its final reinforcement for the home stretch. Veteran slugger Ryan O'Hearn is with the team at Wrigley Field and was activated off the 10-day injured list on Friday. Outfielder Ronny Simon was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis.
O’Hearn admitted that he’s likely not 100% yet but feels “good enough to make a positive impact and take some good at-bats.” Pirates manager Don Kelly said O’Hearn will most likely not play in the outfield the final two weeks of the year and will mainly play first base and serve as the designated hitter. O’Hearn will come off the bench Friday.
“The last five series have been really good. We are just playing good baseball right now. My thing is to come in and help out where I can and keep the good vibes going,” O’Hearn said. “Obviously there is time left in the season. I think if you would have told me on July 31 I was going to get a chance to come back and play in the middle of September and play meaningful baseball, I would have definitely taken that deal. So I am very happy.”
In his first season of a two-year, $29 million deal with the Pirates, O’Hearn is batting .270 with 17 home runs and 69 RBIs despite playing in only 96 games. O’Hearn also sparked one of the highlights of the summer with a 10-RBI night on July 7. He’s missed time with two different IL stints for both his left and right quads.
O’Hearn suffered the left quad injury on July 31 in Cincinnati while running to first base in the ninth inning. He required assistance getting off the field and used a crutch in the clubhouse postgame. O’Hearn also suffered a right quad injury in May and returned far before his expected timeline. After his latest injury, the Pirates’ clubhouse was extremely emotional about losing one of its top veterans.
“Obviously a leader on this team, but not just [for] what he does on the field, but off the field,” infielder Nick Gonzales told MLB.com Friday morning. “Helping us and just being a good veteran, and then obviously what he brings and the run production and the presence in the lineup [was] missed. So getting that guy back is going to be huge for us and help the lineup out.”
O’Hearn began a rehab assignment Tuesday with Indianapolis and went 1-for-3 with a double in his first at-bat while also playing seven innings at first base. He served as the designated hitter for seven innings on Wednesday and took off on Thursday before joining the Major League club in Chicago.
He played just two games, but got his feet wet running the bases and seeing pitches, focusing mostly on swing decisions. The plan was for O’Hearn to be back with the club on Friday and likely be activated Saturday, but he was activated a day early instead.
O’Hearn was frustrated with his quad issues after initially being injured, saying he needed to figure out what to do to prevent injury going forward. He said Friday he intends to focus on making an impact during the last two weeks of the year, and he will re-evaluate the injuries and make adjustments at the end of the season. O’Hearn came back at the early end of a six-to-eight-week window.
“You love when guys want to push it to get back and just to make sure that he's in a good spot to be able to do that,” Kelly said. “Confident in him being able to be Ryan O'Hearn and have good at-bats and be able to move around like he does.”
The Pirates scored 5.16 runs per game in contests O’Hearn appeared in as opposed to 4.24 without him. His veteran presence gives an added edge to the lineup.
When he first went down with the injury, O’Hearn was adamant that he wanted to return with a chance to help the Pirates reach the playoffs. Pittsburgh’s chances are slim (4 1/2 games back in the Wild Card race), but a recent hot streak has kept its hopes alive as O’Hearn returns to action.
“I love these guys. We have been grinding together all year,” O’Hearn said. “The last five-plus weeks on the IL have not been fun, but still got to be around everybody a lot and feel like I am still in it with everybody, so special to be back and available off the bench today.”