Pirates catcher Joey Bart was placed on the 10-day injured list Tuesday because of a foot infection, and team director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Thursday at PNC Park that there is no timetable for his return. Bart noticed discoloration and swelling in the foot before alerting head athletic trainer Luke Novosel, and Tomczyk said the issue did not come from an in-game play.
"Still to be determined," Tomczyk said, adding that the club needs to "see how the body responds, see how the body responds to the initial doses of IV antibiotics and learn more." He said Bart is getting the right care and that, "It wasn’t an in-game injury."
Bart’s absence comes after one of his better stretches of the season. He was batting.400 over his last six games before the move, and in 21 games this year he had hit.259/.290/.379 with two home runs and six RBIs. The 28-year-old is in his third season with Pittsburgh, and his production had given the lineup a lift even as the club continued to manage a patchwork roster.
The Pirates used the same update session to address several other injuries. Jake Mangum has been on the injured list since May 8 with a hamstring strain after hitting.260 with three RBIs and two doubles when he was hurt. Chris Devenski is dealing with an undisclosed illness and has a 7.71 ERA in three appearances with the Pirates. Mitch Jebb underwent surgery in late April on a fractured left thumb, and Anthony Solometo had surgery on his throwing shoulder.
Tomczyk said Bart’s infection is a reminder that ailments can arise away from the field as well as on it. "Unfortunately, this happens in professional sports settings, when they’re always sweating and they’re in and around dirt," he said. The team is waiting for the antibiotics to do their work before it can even sketch out a possible ramp-up.
For now, the club can only watch the next response. Bart is under the care of local physicians in Pittsburgh, and Tomczyk said the catcher will be reassessed as the treatment progresses. Until then, the Pirates are left without one of the hitters who had been producing most consistently before Tuesday’s move.
