Pirates' Andrew McCutchen Shut Down for Rest of 2023 Season with Achilles Injury

Andrew McCutchen's 2023 season has come to a premature end.

The Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder told reporters Wednesday he was diagnosed with a partial tear in his Achilles tendon while running out a double in Monday's 4-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.

Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said there has been no discussion of surgery at this point, but McCutchen will be in a walking boot for the next six weeks.

When the injury initially occurred, McCutchen didn't believe it was anything serious. He amended that after receiving the diagnosis from Pittsburgh's medical staff.

This will lead to some questions about McCutchen's playing future, but he dismissed any talk that retirement was an option and is hoping to return to Pittsburgh so he can hit his 300th homer with the franchise that originally drafted him.

"I'm not gonna go out like this," he said. "I wanna continue to keep playing and push through this, let this heal and be ready to go for 2024."

McCutchen is currently at 299 career homers. He surpassed 2,000 career hits earlier this season. Joey Votto, Miguel Cabrera, Freddie Freeman and Nelson Cruz are the only active players with at least 2,000 hits and 300 homers.

Even though this season didn't end the way McCutchen would have liked, his return to the Pirates was a success. He signed a one-year deal as a free agent in January. The 36-year-old hit .256/.378/.397 with 12 homers and 11 stolen bases in 112 games.

McCutchen hasn't finished a season with a batting average and on-base percentage with at least 100 games played since 2017.

The Pirates' signing of McCutchen last offseason was one of the best feel-good stories in baseball. He was drafted No. 11 overall by the team in 2005 and made his MLB debut four years later.

During McCutchen's first run with Pittsburgh, he was named to five consecutive All-Star teams from 2011 to '15 and won the 2013 NL MVP award. The Pirates ended their 21-year playoff drought in 2013 and made the postseason in three consecutive years through 2015.