This story was excerpted from Alex Stumpf’s Pirates Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

LOS ANGELES – In times of slumps, it’s natural to look towards Triple-A for potential reinforcements. The Pirates already made one such move on Friday, selecting the contract of Domingo Germán to bolster their bullpen, but he isn’t going to be the last guy who gets the call from Indianapolis this year.

Today, we’re going to look at which current Indianapolis players could potentially make an impact before the end of the season.

RHP Jared Jones

It’s been over a month since we’ve seen Jones in a Major League game, but the rookie stud is on a rehab assignment and working his way back. In that first rehab start Thursday, Jones went 2 2/3 innings, and he allowed two runs on one hit and one walk, striking out three while averaging 96.4 mph on his fastball. There’s some rust to shake off, but for a 47-pitch outing, it was an encouraging first step.

“I texted him and asked him if he needed to work on PFP because I know he took a chopper off the chest,” Derek Shelton joked. “His velo was good. It’s just nice to get him back on the mound.”

Before the injury, there was a lot of focus on Jones’ workload and inning total in his rookie season, but this stint on the injured list should quell those concerns. His health is obviously paramount, but he’s not going to blow past his previous inning totals like what was originally expected.

So what does that right arm look like down the stretch? Jones at full strength is a ton of fun to watch. If he can turn in a strong final month and a half, it could really help this team and be a building block for the 2025 squad.

C Henry Davis

The big question with Davis coming into the year was if he could be good enough defensively to be a Major League catcher. The answer is yes. He took a huge step forward as a receiver this winter, showing he can build good relationships with his pitchers and call a good game.

Now the question is: Can he hit Major League pitching?

He certainly can hit Minor League arms. Davis is crushing the ball with Indianapolis, hitting .302 with 12 home runs, 35 RBIs and a .990 OPS. Normally, that would warrant a promotion, but the Pirates feel pretty good about their catchers right now. Joey Bart has been solid all season and Yasmani Grandal is a respected voice in the clubhouse who has caught Paul Skenes particularly well. That leaves Davis without a spot, and stashing him in right field again isn’t really an option either with Bryan De La Cruz now on the team -- not that the Pirates would want to undermine all that progress Davis has made as a catcher.

It seems safe to assume we’ll see Davis in the Majors again sometime before the season is through, but it’s hard to pinpoint exactly when that could be.

2B Nick Yorke/ 3B Billy Cook

The Pirates wanted to deepen their position player pool at the Trade Deadline and picked up Yorke from the Red Sox and Cook from the Orioles, two players who are defensively versatile with intriguing traits as hitters. They’ve both clobbered the ball with their new clubs, with Yorke batting .364 with a .906 OPS in nine games with Indianapolis, while Cook is hitting .450 with a 1.350 OPS in six games with five doubles, four stolen bases and four RBIs in Triple-A.

Both players would need to be added to the 40-man roster, but considering they’re Rule 5 eligible this winter, they’re probably going to need to have their contracts selected anyway if the Pirates want to keep them. The outfield has been very fluid (outside of Bryan Reynolds) all season, so there would seem to be some opportunity there if the Pirates want to push a hitter up to the Majors.