Top Bucs prospect Starling Marte will return to action tomorrow in a rehab assignment with the Pirates' rookie league team. Marte had missed over a month after having surgery on a broken hamate bone. This shouldn't cause lasting problems, Jenifer Langosch writes:
↵The good news for Marte is that most players who suffer broken hamates go on to have a full recovery, even if it takes a little time for the power and timing to all return to pre-injury levels. The Pirates don't have to look far for an example of that, as Pedro Alvarez broke his hamate bone and underwent the same procedure in 2008. Alvarez, the organization's top prospect, has had no issues since.↵
Langosch also wrote that it would take eight to ten weeks for Marte to return; it turns out it's going to take a bit less than that. This is good news, because Marte might have the most untapped talent of any Pirates prospect, and he needs all the development time he can get.