Pirates reinstate Jared Hughes, option Rob Scahill

The Pirates announced that they've reinstated reliever Jared Hughes from the disabled list, where he'd been since spring training due to a lat strain.  To make room on the active roster, they optioned Rob Scahill to AAA.

Hughes is a groundball specialist who appeared in 139 major league games in 2014-15 with a combined 2.12 ERA.  Advanced stats like xFIP don't seem to like him nearly as much as the ERA suggests, but his extreme groundball tendencies and penchant for getting double play grounders at nearly double the average rate in the NL have a lot of appeal to the Pirates.  Whether he'll provide immediate help to their beleaguered bullpen remains to be seen, as he's put up a 7.50 ERA and 1.67 WHIP during his AAA rehab assignment.  The Pirates could use the help not just because of the poor performances they've had from their relievers, but because the inadequacy of both their rotation and their bullpen has forced them to carry 13 pitchers, a handicap they apparently will continue to play with for the time being.

Scahill has been with the Pirates since April 14.  In six innings he's posted an ERA of 6.00 and a WHIP of 1.50.