Pirates Manager Shuts Down David Bednar Concerns
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PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher David Bednar has done well so far this Spring Training, with his manager showing his confidence in him.
Bednar pitched a scoreless fifth inning in the 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies in the Grapefruit League at LECOM Park in Bradenton, Fla. on March 18, striking out two batters and not allowing a baserunner.
This Spring Training is crucial for Bednar, as he looks to get back to his form he had in prior seasont o last.
Bednar struggled last season for the Pirates, with a 3-8 record, a 5.77 ERA in 57.2 innings pitched in 62 games, 23 saves and seven blown saves in 30 opportunities.
He started off the season poorly, blowing three saves in his first four save opportunities, but managed to get things back on track, and avoiding a blown save from April 12-Aug. 3.
Bednar struggled again in August, as the Pirates went 8-19 in the month after spending time competing for a National League wild card spot.
He blew saves in back-to-back games against the San Diego Padres at home on Aug. 7 and Aug. 8 and lost games with the score tied against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Aug. 11 and the Texas Rangers on Aug. 21, both on the road.
Pirates manager Derek Shelton removed Bednar as the primary closer on Aug. 30, going by committee the rest of the season.
Shelton has had great confidence in Bednar, speaking earlier in Spring Training about it and even with a tough outing, he sees him bouncing back in 2025.
He also excused Bednar's outing vs. the Minnesota Twins on March 13, where he allowed three hits, two of which were doubles, two walks and four runs on just one out due to poor defense and won't let one performance stop hm from belieiving in Bednar.
"Yeah, I mean, I think the day versus Minnesota was a blip on the radar," Shelton said. "He was not good, he was not consistent. I know he’s been working with [pitching coach] Oscar [Marin], he’s watched some stuff.
"I thought the last time, I mean the last time, we just didn’t catch the ball, that had nothing to do with him.
"I thought today he was sharp, fastball was at the top. I mean, completely confident David Bednar, I’ve been saying that all spring, he’s going to bounce back, he’s going to have a good year.
"Sometimes you have a bad outing in spring training and everybody kind of goes off the rails and worries, but complete confidence in him and what he’s going to do and the last two outings have been good and today we caught the ball. Last one didn’t look as good because we didn’t play good defense, but his stuff was good."
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.