Pirates Manager Stands By Bullpen After Blown Lead
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen struggled in their Opening Day contest vs. the Miami Marlins at LoanDeport Park, blowing a lead.
The Pirates led 4-1 in the sixth inning and starting pitcher Paul Skenes did well, but allowed two walks with one out.
Right-handed pitcher Dennis Santana came in and walked a batter, had one of his pitchers go behind allowing a run to score and then after a strikeout, walked another batter to load the bases.
The Pirates turned to left-handed pitcher Ryan Borucki, who came back from a 3-0 count to throw three straight strikes and get out of a tough situation, still up 4-2.
Pittsburgh then got a solid performance from left-handed pitcher Caleb Ferguson, who pitched a scoreless seventh inning.
The Pirates had right-handed pitcher Colin Holderman come on in the eighth inning and he walked Marlins left fielder Kyle Stowers for his first batter.
He would force designated hitter Jonah Bride into a groundout and struck out first baseman Matt Mervis for two outs, but Stowers made it to second base.
Holderman then allowed a single to second baseman Otto Lopez, scoring Stowers, and ending up at second base after the throw home from Pirates center fielder Oneil Cruz.
He almost struckout right fielder Dane Myers, but a missed call kept the inning going. Myers then singled on a pitch outside the zone, scoring Lopez from second base, tying it at 4-4.
The Pirates sent out right-handed pitcher David Bednar out in the ninth inning and allowed a triple to catcher Nick Fortes. Stowers played the hero, singling Fortes home for the walk-off, 5-4 comeback win.
Pirates manager Derek Shelton stuck by his bullpen after the defeat, noting that it's still Opening Day.
“It’s one game in," Shelton said. "We have guys that have to perform and I have faith that our guys will get it done.”
Holderman and Bednar struggled in 2024, but especially towards the end of the season, which saw the Pirates fall out of the National League Wild Card Race.
Bednar struggled especially in the month of August, as 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,
He lost his closer position on Aug. 30, as Shelton went by committee for the rest of the season.
Holderman blew two saves over a eight-day span from July 31-Aug. 7, while also losing his two other appearances, as he struggled containing opposing teams.
Shelton still hasn't named a closer for the season, with Bednar and Holderman still his top choices, despite their Opening Day performances.
He also praised Borucki, the only non-roster Spring Training invite that made the Pirates roster, and Ferguson, who signed a one-year, $3 million deal as a free agent, for pitching well when they came in.
“Our lefties, yeah. I mean, they did a nice job," Shelton said. "They came in, Borucki got a big out. Ferguson came in, did a good job. Cleaned it up. That was a definite highlight.”
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.