Pirates Already Have Next Great Relief Pitcher
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates have a strong bullpen this season with one relief pitcher standing out amongst the rest.
Left-handed pitcher Gregory Soto has been fantastic for the Pirates this season, with a 1.59 ERA over 17 appearances and 17.0 innings pitched, 23 strikeouts to six walks, a .107 batting average allowed (BAA) and a 0.71 WHIP.
Soto joined the PIrates on a one-year, $7.75 million deal as a free agent this offseason, bringing in veteran experience and back-to-back All-Star nods with the Detroit Tigers in 2021 and 2022.
It's been a great time so far between for Soto, who could play a vital role in helping the Pirates ending their long playoff drought.
Soto Dominating Opposing Hitters
The standard metrics for Soto look great as they are on their own, but when looking upon his advanced stats, opposing hitters simply have no idea what to do when he's ont he mound.
Soto's 82.5 mph average exit velocity is in the top 1% of MLB pitchers and his 24.2% hard hit balls is a top 3% rate as well. His .151 expected batting average (xBA) and .217 expected on-base percentage (xOBP). also rank top 1% of MLB pitchers.
His weighted on-base average (wOBA) is .190 and his expected weighted on-base average (xwOBA) is .221, both top 3% in baseball, while his expected weighted on-base average on contact (xwOBAcon) of .270 is in the top 5% of MLB pitchers.
It's unsurprising to see Soto's expected ERA at 1.91, top 3% of baseball, as he's thrown 15 scoreless outings and only given up hits in four appearances.
Soto Filling Whatever Role the Pirates Need
The Pirates have deployed Soto as a high-leverage reliever, someone that can come into any situation and get the job done.
Only one time did he not do that, blowing a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning vs. the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field on April 22, despite getting to the last strike with two outs before allowing a
Soto has only given up a home run, which came in the home opener vs. the Baltimore Orioles on April 3, but has been close to perfect since that day.
The Pirates have used him as a their set-up man and formed a duo with closer in right-handed pitcher Dennis Santana, generally coming in the eighth inning.
Soto has also come in different innings, particularly when the Pirates are going to extras, but whatever high-leverage situation they need him for, he can come on and excel.
His best showing of the season came in his most recent performance vs. the Cincinnati Reds at PNC Park on May 3.
Soto came in for right-handed starting pitcher Braxton Ashcraft, who threw 7.2 scoreless innings prior.
He struck out center fielder TJ Freidl on seven pitches, with runners on the corners to get the final out and then got three quick outs to secure a 1-0 win for the Pirates and a sweep over their divisional rival.
It was just another great outing from Soto, but one that the Pirates know they can get from their veteran southpaw, who could be their next Tony Watson, their set-up lefty that dominated from 2011-17.
How Soto's Pitch Mix Has Changed for the Better
Soto has gone with his sinker, sweeper, slider and four-seam fastball for his pitch mix this season, but has changed up how he's thrown them.
He has dropped his sinker usage from 52.5% in 2025 to 39.9% in 2026 and also halved his slider usage from 32.5% in 2025 to 16.3% in 2026.
Soto has thrown his sweeper four times as much from last year, going from 7.6% in 2025 to 28.1% in 2026 and doubled his four-seam fastball usage from 7.1% in 2025 to 15.3% in 2026.
It's worked out well for Soto, as he has given up just two hits in 24 at-bats on his sweeper for a .083 BAA and has a 47.2% whiff rate. His slider is still effective, with a 40% whiff rate and not allowed a hit on it as well, while he also hasn't given up a hit on his four-seam fastball.
Soto will still go mostly with his sinker, but relying on that less and going to his other pitches has worked out really well so far.
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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.