Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday after three rough outings to begin the season.
The move cleared a spot on the 26-man active roster for right-hander Thomas Harrington, the team’s No. 3 prospect who was recalled from Triple-A to start against the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night.
In addition, catcher Jason Delay was designated for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster.
Bednar, 30, has an ERA of 27.00 through three games, including two losses plus a blown save in the Pirates’ season-opening series against Miami.
The struggles of Bednar, a Mars native and two-time All-Star, date to last year and constitute a significant fall from grace.
After strong 2022 and 2023 campaigns, which saw him ascend to the closer’s role and become one of the best high-leverage relievers in baseball, Bednar went 3-8 with a 5.77 ERA in 62 games in 2024, recording 23 saves in 30 tries.
Bednar’s seven blown saves last year equaled that of 2022 and 2023 combined, when he converted 58 of 65 saves.
In the offseason, Bednar avoided arbitration and signed a one-year, $5.9 million contract with the Pirates through this season.
Delay has spent parts of the last three seasons with the Pirates dating to 2022 and was in the mix this spring for the backup catcher’s role, which ultimately went to Endy Rodriguez.
Before being designated for assignment Tuesday, Delay was optioned to Triple-A on March 18.
Last year, a knee injury interrupted his season after one game and he appeared in seven games with the Pirates, batting .200 with six RBIs.
In total, he has appeared in 134 games for the Pirates over the last three seasons, hitting .231 with two homers and 35 RBIs.