In a surprising move, it was reported on Friday afternoon that rookie right-handed reliever Dugan Darnell had been quietly placed on waivers and claimed by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Darnell will be placed on Pittsburgh’s
60-day injured list.
It was unknown that the Colorado Rockies had placed Darnell on waivers. The team does not currently have a head of baseball operations or general manager, and no moves had been mentioned by the team or anyone in the Rockies’ media bubble.
Darnell, 28, was one of the few pleasant stories in a miserable 2025 season. Originally an undersized middle infielder at division III Adrian College, Darnell realized a talent for pitching in his senior year. After a few seasons in independent baseball, he cold-called all 30 of Major League Baseball’s teams looking for a minor league deal. It was the Rockies who gave him a chance.
After parts of five successful seasons in the Rockies farm system, Darnell was finally called upon to make his long awaited major league debut on August 1st as part of a wild Rockies comeback victory against the very Pirates that claimed him.
Darell made nine appearances with a 3.86 ERA over 11 2/3 innings of work in his rookie season with five strikeouts.
Sadly, his season was cut short. He was pulled from an appearance against the Los Angeles Dodgers on August 21st.
“I knew something was wrong, but I wanted to stay in so bad,” Darnell said. “I was trying to tell myself I was okay. I tried to do everything I could to stay out there, but things happen.”
Darnell was placed on the 15-day injured list with left hip inflammation, but quickly moved to the 60-day injured list. He was diagnosed with a torn labrum in his left hip with additional structural damage in the hip socket. He had surgery scheduled for September 23rd that came with an eight to ten month recovery time and a likelihood of missing the start of the 2026 season.
The loss of Darnell is a surprising one, but likely comes in advance of upcoming league deadlines with the World Series set to end this weekend.
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