Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said that Triolo got injured when he rounded third base in the home opener vs. the Baltimore Orioles on April 3, which didn’t knock him out, but did for the following game on April 4.<\/p>\n
Cherington sees this injury taking weeks and not days to come back from for Triolo, but that they expect him back for most of this year. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was in that home opener. He rounded third base scoring a run and felt something in his knee as he rounded third base hitting the bag,” Cherington said about Triolo on his radio show. “Obviously finished the game, but was in pain and there was some swelling post-game. We wanted to get a better look at it yesterday, give him a chance to recover, see what happened yesterday. Still was feeling quite a bit yesterday, so we did an MRI.<\/p>\n
“He\u2019s got a patellar tendon injury that the good news is that, this is the type of injury that should be rehabbed conservatively. It\u2019s not a surgical case anything like that, but it will take some time. It\u2019s more of a weeks-long thing than a days-long thing. He goes on the IL today, Billy Cook\u2019s back.<\/p>\n
“It\u2019s tough losing Tri\u2019, he\u2019s a really important player for our roster, but he\u2019s going to back. Confident he\u2019s going to be back for the lion share of the 2026 season, hopefully, we just have to get him healthy\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
How the Pirates Operate Without Triolo<\/p>\n
Triolo did serve as the Pirates starting shortstop, before they called up top prospect Konnor Griffin, and he started at third base. <\/p>\n
He slashed .217\/.308\/.261 for an OPS of .569 in six games, with five hits in 23 at-bats, a double, a RBI and two walks to five strikeouts.<\/p>\n
The Pirates now need both Nick Yorke<\/a> and Nick Gonzales<\/a> to step up in Triolo’s absence at third base.<\/p>\n Apr 1, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Nick Gonzales (3) throws to first to get Cincinnati Reds second baseman Matt McLain (not pictured) out in the seventh inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images<\/p>\n It’s a difficult loss for Pittsburgh, despite Triolo’s struggles from the plate, as he is great defensively at third base and won a Gold Glove Award as a utility player in 2024 and was a finalist<\/a> in 2025.<\/p>\n Yorke and Gonzales don’t have much experience at the positon, but Gonzales was the main starter there before Griffin came up, making five starts, while Yorke has two starts there.<\/p>\n Both players will compete for time at third base, with how they play defensively and produce from the plate the two big factors for who will get most of the time at the position moving forward. <\/p>\n![\"Pittsburgh](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/01knggy7czmrrxtr63kn.jpg\" "\\"Pittsburgh")
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