Ashcraft is eligible to come off the IL, and Pittsburgh has seven games left to play

Braxton Ashcraft's 15-day IL stint opened on September 11, which means he's structurally eligible to return right now. The Pirates are 78-77, still breathing on the wild-card bubble with an elimination number of two and a week of baseball remaining. Whether he actually takes the ball is a separate question — there's been no reported clearance or activation — but the calendar has at least stopped working against them on this one.

The rotation needed the help. When Ashcraft went down, Pittsburgh was leaning on Paul Skenes and Bubba Chandler to carry the staff, with Jared Jones and Carmen Mlodzinski filling the gaps behind them. That group held up well enough — the Pirates have gone 7-3 over their last ten games — but Ashcraft at 15-6 with a 3.63 ERA is a different kind of arm than what's been available. He was the most reliable starter on the staff before the IL stint, and seven games is a short enough window that even two starts from him would matter.

Mitch Keller remains on the 60-day IL and isn't coming back. The question now is simply whether Ashcraft is healthy enough to pitch meaningful innings in the final week, or whether the Pirates finish this run with the same four-man arrangement that's gotten them this far.