Pirates' Jack Brannigan: Protected from Rule 5 Draft
Rotowire
The Pirates selected Brannigan's (shoulder) contract from Double-A Altoona on Tuesday, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.
Brannigan slashed .225/.329/.358 across 237 plate appearances at Double-A Altoona in 2025 before suffering a shoulder injury in June that required season-ending surgery. The 24-year-old infielder will join Pittsburgh's 40-man roster to ensure he remains with the organization past the Rule 5 Draft in December, though he shouldn't be expected to appear in the big leagues in 2026.
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Pirates' Jack Brannigan: On mend from labrum surgery
Rotowire
The Pirates announced last week that Brannigan underwent season-ending surgery to repair the labrum in his right shoulder, Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Double-A Altoona initially placed Brannigan on the injured list June 14 before the Pirates determined just over a month later that he would need an operation to address his shoulder injury. The 24-year-old infielder is expected to make a full recovery in advance of the next season, but he'll finish the 2025 campaign with a .225/.329/.358 slash line to go with five home runs and nine stolen bases across 237 plate appearances with Altoona.
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Pirates' Jack Brannigan: Sidelined at Double-A
Rotowire
Double-A Altoona placed Brannigan on its 7-day injured list June 14 due to an unspecified injury.
The 24-year-old shortstop slashed .225/.329/.358 with five home runs and nine stolen bases over 237 plate appearances for Altoona this season before landing on the shelf.
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Pirates' Jack Brannigan: Taking hot bat to AFL
Rotowire
Brannigan will play for the Salt River Rafters this year in the Arizona Fall League.
Brannigan went on a tear to close the regular season, slashing .299/.382/.605 with 12 home runs and seven steals in 38 games after getting promoted from Single-A Bradenton to High-A Greensboro. He played 47 games at third base, 27 games at shortstop and 11 games at second base this year and will turn 23 years old during spring training. Given his age and 33.5 percent strikeout rate at High-A, there's reason to be skeptical of him hitting enough in the upper levels of the minors to profile as a big-league regular.
