David Bednar’s last 16 months have been a complete rollercoaster.
In 2024, Bednar was coming off his second straight All Star appearance and a season that saw him record career-best 2.00 ERA, with 80 strikeouts in 67.1 innings. He led the National League with 39 saves on a team that finished ten games under .500. Over half of the Pirates’ wins in 2023 saw Bednar earn a save.
But 2024 was a disaster. It started early, with the infamous “don’t boo” game where Bednar blew a multi-run lead in the ninth, and it didn’t get much better. Bednar had a 5.77 ERA in 57.2 innings, with nearly all of his numbers heading in the wrong direction. He still found a way to record 23 saves, but he never was able to be consistently trusted on the mound.
Whenever he took a step forward, it seemed like only a matter of days before he took a step back. In the dying weeks of the season, as the Pirates collapsed in August and killed their season with a lengthy losing streak, manager Derek Shelton demoted him from the closer’s job and went with closer-by-committee to end the year.
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