Pirates' Bae Ji-hwan placed on injured list with sprained ankle

Bae Ji-hwan of the Pittsburgh Pirates has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a left ankle sprain, bringing his first half of the season to a premature conclusion.

The Pirates made the move Sunday (local time), a day after the South Korean utility player suffered the injury while making a diving play on a groundball against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Bae will miss a minimum of 10 days, and with the Pirates having seven more days of action left in the first half, Bae won't be back in action until after the All-Star break at the earliest. The midseason break goes from next Monday to July 13.

In his first full major league season, Bae is batting .238/.301/.308 with two home runs, 19 RBIs and a team-leading 20 steals in 76 games. The 23-year-old appeared in 10 games late last season.

The versatile defender has made 38 starts at second base, 19 starts in center field and three starts at shortstop so far in 2023.

Bae joins fellow South Korean player for the Pirates, first baseman Choi Ji-man, on the injured list. Choi has been sidelined since April 15 with a strained left Achilles tendon.

Choi has appeared in six minor league rehab games and has moved up from Double-A Altoona to Triple-A Indianapolis. The 32-year-old has batted 8-for-19 with two home runs, one double and one triple.

The initial expectation had been that Choi could be back in the big leagues before the end of June. He's now targeting a July return. (Yonhap)