When Pirates general manager Ben Cherington traded closer David Bednar to the New York Yankees at the trade deadline last year, he was taking a gamble.

In the longer term, he was banking on the return of 24-year-old Triple-A catcher Rafael Flores, 20-year-old outfielder Brian Sanchez, and 19-year-old catcher Edgleen Perez would outweigh the departure of Bednar.

In the shorter term, however, he was taking the chance that his bullpen could withstand the loss of the longtime closer.

While the three prospects Cherington acquired were all lottery tickets to one extent or another, the Pirates still believed they had ample replacement for Bednar.

Dennis Santana had experienced a complete revival since arriving in Pittsburgh via the waiver wire in mid-June back in 2024. The right-hander had rebounded from a 6.26 ERA in two months with the New York Yankees, rehabbing himself to a 2.44 ERA with the Pirates the rest of the year.

Last season, Santana established himself as an incredible set-up man. The Dominican native put up career-bests almost across the board, including a 2.18 ERA, 0.867 WHIP, and 3.53 strikeout-to-walk ratio. In the 24 games he appeared in after Bednar’s trade, 21 of them saw him pitch the ninth inning.

He had the skillset, the numbers, and the confidence to slide into Bednar’s spot and take over as closer. But this season has been a different story. Though he started the season as closer and allowed just one earned run through his first 13 games, Santana has really hit a rough patch.

Santana has surrendered eight earned runs in his last seven games. On three occasions, he has failed to toss a full inning. He hasn’t recorded a strikeout since April 25th.

But every pitcher has a rough patch. Bullpens are fluid. And this is part of the reason why the Pirates signed Gregory Soto as well. The left-hander, who signed a one-year, $7.75 million deal with the Pirates back in the winter, was bringing seven years of major league experience and multiple seasons as a closer with him to Pittsburgh.

If Santana faltered, Soto was brought in to help pick up the slack. A fellow Dominican, Soto was coming off a 4.18 ERA season where he split time between the Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets.

During his back-to-back All-Star campaigns in 2021 and 2022, Soto finished nearly 75% of the games he appeared in and recorded a combined 3.34 ERA over 124 total innings.

And in his early work, Soto lived up to the highest hopes Pittsburgh’s front office. A solo home run was the only blemish on his first 12 innings, and he was one of baseball’s most deployed relievers a quarter of the way through the season.

But as of late, Soto is also struggling. After his scoreless streak was finally broken against Colorado on Tuesday, the dam broke against him three days later.

And on Friday, both Soto and Santana’s troubles coincided in a heartbreaking collapse at PNC Park. After the Pirates went up 6-0 and held an 8-3 lead over a visiting Philadelphia team, the Phillies were able to mount a comeback from five runs down, starting with a two-run homer by Kyle Schwarber in the seventh inning.

Then in the ninth, with the Pirates still up three, Soto was sent in to close the door on the Phillies. But bit by bit, it all fell apart.

The top of the ninth started with Edmundo Sosa reaching on an error from Konnor Griffin, and a wild pitch sent Sosa to second. Soto did force Justin Crawford to ground out, Soto just collapsed after that.

He walked pinch-hitter Adolis García, allowed a Trea Turner single to load the bases, issued a four-pitch free pass to Schwarber to walk in a one, and was mere inches away from hanging a grand slam ball to Bryce Harper. The fly ball deep to center field off the railing survived a review, but it still scored two runs to wipe away the three-run lead the Pirates had.

Mercifully, Soto was able to end the inning before Philadelphia took the lead, but some serious damage was already done. After a scoreless bottom half, the game went to extras, where manager Don Kelly turned to Santana to give the Pirates a chance.

Just three pitches in, Brandon Marsh hit a fly ball double to score the automatic runner and put Philadelphia on top. In fairness to Santana, the slider he threw was well out of the zone, a pitch most people wouldn’t expect to be mashed like that. But pitches well out of the zone would become a theme for Santana’s outing.

Bryson Stott hit a single as the next man up, and stole second base without contest. Both him and Marsh were able to score when Rafael Marchán singled on a line drive to center. Marchán then made it to third after Justin Crawford’s single, sending the fifth player to bat for the Phillies with no one out.

Kelly was forced to take him out, subbing in Brandan Bidois to try and salvage the tenth. Bidois kept the Phillies off the board further, but the Pirates entered the bottom of the tenth in a three-run hole. Unlike Philadelphia an inning before, they couldn’t climb out of it.

Soto and Santana allowed a combined six runs (four earned), six hits, two walks, and not a single strikeout. When we look back at the end of the season, this loss might be the most stinging of them all.

And yet, it should be a wake-up call.

The Pirates have to do something with their bullpen, because at one point, it looked like the Pirates might have two closer-worthy arms. Right now, it doesn’t look like they have any.

It doesn’t look like the rest of the bullpen is super capable of pulling their weight, either.

Making a trade is the obvious attempt, and the one fans will clamor for. The irony there is that perhaps if Cherington had not made a certain trade, things might be different.

But regardless of what how the team goes about it, they have to try something. Make a trade, look at the waiver wire, shuffle arms between Indianapolis and Pittsburgh.

Show some urgency, bottom line. You cannot, cannot, cannot let the bullpen start a skid that you won’t be able to stop.