Ashcraft’s stellar first full season for Pirates ends on IL; no long-term concern

Angels Pirates Baseball Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Braxton Ashcraft delivers a pitch against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning of a baseball game in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Tom E. Puskar) (Tom E. Puskar/AP Photo/Tom E. Puskar)

By Danny Demilio

This article originally appeared on PGHBaseballNOW.

Braxton Ashcraft’s stellar first extended season for the Pirates is over. The right-hander was placed on the 15-day injured list on Sep. 10 with right arm discomfort and will not return to the mound by the end of the year.

Fortunately for Ashcraft, who has an extensive injury history from his time as a prospect, his current arm discomfort is not anything to worry about long-term. He even said he would have pushed through it had the Pirates not been eliminated from the playoffs.

“I was never concerned,” Ashcraft said of his injury. “Nobody ever had a concern about anything being structural or anything that was more than just general discomfort because of fatigue.”

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