Sports

With Carmen Mlodzinski not 'ready' to pitch Sunday, the Pirates put him on the restricted list

By Colin Beazley, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The Tribune Content Agency

May 31, 2026 11:07 PM

Carmen Mlodzinski wasn't happy when the Pirates moved him to the bullpen. He hasn't appeared yet in relief - and on Sunday, the Pirates officially placed him on the restricted list.

But Pirates general manager Ben Cherington, meeting with reporters during Sunday's game, said it was a decision made for Sunday and not one signifying something bigger.

"Confident that we're going to see him pitch for this team very soon, but he wasn't ready to do that today," Cherington said. "Going into the weekend, we understood and communicated with Carmen that at some point this weekend we were going to need him to be ready or we'd have to replace him on the team in fairness to the team, so that's what happened today."

The restricted list is used for players who are under contract but are not available to play, either for non-baseball or personal reasons. It is separate from the injured or bereavement lists. Players on the restricted list are not paid, do not accrue service time, and do not count toward the 40-man roster.

With an open spot on the active roster, the Pirates recalled right-hander Cam Sanders from Triple-A Indianapolis. There is no minimum or maximum amount of time for a player to be on the restricted list. He's expected to be available Tuesday, a source informed the Post-Gazette.

The move is the latest in a saga that officially began Thursday, when the Pirates activated Jared Jones from the 60-day injured list and announced that Mlodzinski would move into a bullpen role. Mlodzinski, who has always wanted to be a starter, is 4-3 with a 3.76 ERA in 11 appearances (nine starts) this year.

Speaking postgame on Thursday, Mlodzinski didn't hide his displeasure.

"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," Mlodzinski said. "I really don't have any comments after that."

Cherington said Mlodzinski has not requested a trade. He informed Cherington on Sunday morning that he was not ready to pitch for the Pirates.

When asked whether he was physically or mentally not ready, Cherington said he didn't want to speak for Mlodzinski.

"We've made really good progress on [his role] and have alignment on what that's going to be," Cherington said. "Probably sometime starting yesterday, last night, felt that there was at least a chance we were going to have to do something to make sure the team was protected [if Mlodzinski was not ready] and that's what led up to it."

He added he expects Mlodzinski to pitch for the Pirates at some time on the upcoming road trip, a six-game, six-day set against the Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves starting Tuesday.

When he pitches, Cherington will consider the matter settled.

"My belief is that Carmen Mlodzinski is going to pitch a lot of meaningful innings for this team this year and he's going to help us win games," Cherington said on his weekly radio show Sunday. "I'm looking forward to seeing that."