In the fall, Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes won the NL Cy Young Award. Meanwhile, his teammate and fellow right-hander Jared Jones endured elbow injuries. In May 2025, he underwent surgery.
As he embarks on his recovery, Jones is very optimistic and has some choice words to make his point about pitching on the first day, per Alex Stumpf of MLB.com.
“Let's f—-ing go!” he said.
Also, Jones is staying on course to return for the 2026 season with the Pirates, per Darren Yuvan of Bucs Dugout.com. In December, he returned to throwing and threw a bullpen session.
“I’m feeling pretty good right now, haven’t had a pretty big hiccup yet, and I’m very grateful for that. It’s been pretty smooth. Just getting back into everything and starting to throw again and getting off the mound, everything feels great, and like how it’s coming out the hand and getting ready to pitch again is what I’m looking forward to most here.”
In 2024, Jones pitched in 22 games and finished with a 6-8 record and 4.14 ERA. The Pirates finished with a 71-91 record and in last place in the NL Central. Meanwhile, Skenes finished with a 10-10 record and a 1.97 ERA.
Both Skenes and Jones are referred to as the “Hundo Boys” in reference to their throwing 100+ mph fastballs. They arrived in Pittsburgh as rookies in 2024 and became roommates as eventually really close friends. Both have become central to Pittsburgh's pitching staff with high strikeout totals and consistency.
It’s clear: To find one, look for the other.
