PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – You would imagine being a 23-year-old who can throw it 100 miles an hour, you probably feel pretty invincible. You earn a spot in the rotation your rookie year and three buttons down you rock the chest hair and an attitude.
Jared Jones struck out 132 as a rookie and was going to be a key part of the 2025 Pirates rotation with Paul Skenes. Then in Spring Training he was having some discomfort in his elbow. That turned into Tommy John surgery and missing the entire season.
The energic right-hander is back throwing.
"Every time I pick up a ball right now, I appreciate every second of it,” Jones said Friday at PiratesFest.
It’s thought he might be ready to return a couple of months into the season, but Jones puts no timetable on it. He said rehab has been going ‘good’, his bullpen sessions ‘have been going pretty well’. He’s progressed to throwing twice a week.
Jones said he’s increasing his velocity and every two to three weeks mixes in another off-speed pitch. He said he’s a competitive person and right now just competing against throwing fastballs in the strike zone. You probably wouldn’t be surprised to know that when he doesn’t perform how he wants, he has choice words for himself.
Just trying to keep that edge.
As for where he is right now?
“I started really slow and I’m throwing really hard right now,” Jones said. The plan is simply to keep throwing harder with the goal being to throw as hard as he can.
Married in the offseason, the 24-year-old is excited about the youth on the pitching staff and he said it was fun to watch them progress over last season. He’s buddies with Skenes, attended his Cy Young party, and said keeping Mitch Keller means they have the veteran leader of their group. The guy any of them can hit up for advice.
Switching to the number 17 in honor of his father and grandfather, Jones is bullish on this team. He’s aware of the new additions not just in the lineup, but the bullpen.
"Yeah, sounds like we're going to win a lot of ballgames here soon," Jones said.
He missed the game, getting back on the mound was like a Christmas present. Now its about getting back out there and helping the team that drafted him out of high school in the second round in 2020.
"Let's (freaking) go."