For the first time in almost a year, Endy Rodriguez is back with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Pirates recalled the 25-year-old catcher, their 2022 minor league player of the year, from Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday to replace Joey Bart, who was placed on the 10-day injured list with an infection in his left foot.
After making his major-league debut in 2023, Rodriguez missed the 2024 season to undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. Rodriguez played only 18 games for the Pirates last season before being sidelined by injuries for the second consecutive season. He suffered a laceration on his right hand in April 2025, then was sidelined in early June by inflammation in his surgically repaired elbow.
Rodriguez batted .221/.326/.301 with six doubles, a home run and 16 RBIs in 34 games at Indianapolis this season, splitting time between catcher (20 starts) and designated hitter (13 starts) with Rafael Flores.
Bart was batting .259/.290/.379 with a double, two home runs and six RBIs in 21 games, with 21 strikeouts against only two walks. He started five of the Pirates’ past seven games, hitting .412 (7 for 17) with three RBIs, including a solo homer Thursday at Arizona.
The Pirates also shuffled their bullpen, recalling right-handed reliever Brandan Bidois from Triple-A Indianapolis and optioning righty Cam Sanders to the minors.
Bidois, a 24-year-old from Brisbane, Australia, won Kent Tekulve Reliever of the Year honors last season after going 8-0 with a 0.74 ERA — the lowest in all of the minor leagues — and an 0.80 WHIP with seven saves across four levels. He started the season at Low-A Bradenton and finished it at Indianapolis, riding a stretch of facing 64 consecutive batters without allowing a hit from July 29-Sept. 9, and was added to the 40-man roster in November.
Bidois was 3-2 with a 7.20 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, 23 strikeouts against nine walks and a .267 batting average against in 15 innings over 15 appearances at Indianapolis this season.