Amid a season of struggles highlighted by a disastrous appearance Aug. 28 against the Chicago Cubs, right-handed reliever David Bednar was removed from the closer’s role, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton announced Friday.
Per Shelton, the Pirates will operate by committee when it comes to who takes the hill in save situations, with Bednar assuming a lower-leverage role out of the bullpen.
What that committee looks like remains to be seen, but Shelton has an easy option in hard-throwing lefty Aroldis Chapman, who is 20th on MLB’s all-time saves list (325).
The 36-year-old is 5-4 with a 3.55 ERA this season, primarily working as Bednar’s setup man.
“In the short-term, Bednar will move out of the closer role,” Shelton said on the SportsNet Pittsburgh pregame show. “It’s something that can take a little pressure off him. We know that this guy’s been really good over the last couple years. He’s scuffling a little bit.”
Young righties Kyle Nicolas and Carmen Mlodzinski also could see action in the ninth.
Trade deadline acquisition Jalen Beeks formerly served as a closer for the Colorado Rockies before arriving in Pittsburgh earlier this summer.
Bednar, an All-Star for the Pirates in 2022 and 2023 and a Mars alum, is 3-7 with a 6.32 ERA this year in 50 games.
Through 47 innings, he has 49 strikeouts, 18 walks and a 1.43 WHIP.
After blowing a combined seven saves over his two All-Star campaigns, Bednar has blown six this year in 29 opportunities.
He has allowed a career-high eight homers on the year, up from three given up last season and four in 2022.
Against the Cubs on Wednesday, he allowed five runs on three hits with a pair of walks as Chicago rallied to a 14-10 win at PNC Park, sweeping the Pirates.
Bednar has an ERA of 10.97 in August with three blown saves and has allowed 13 earned runs in 10 2/3 innings over that span.
“(Bednar) understands it,” Shelton continued. “I empathize with him. He understands he’s struggling. He understands that there’s some things that he has to do to get back to where we want him to be. I’m sure he’ll work hard at doing that.”
To begin the year, Bednar blew the first save opportunity he was presented on March 31 against the Miami Marlins.
In April, the 29-year-old had five saves in seven tries but recorded an 0-2 record and 13.50 ERA.
Bednar looked like his old self in May and June, going 11 of 11 in save opportunities along with a combined ERA of 2.14.
In late June, he served a stint on the 15-day injured list with a left oblique strain, returning to action July 12.
Before this season, Bednar had appeared in 189 games for the Pirates since joining the club in 2021, posting a 2.65 ERA.
Justin Guerriero is a TribLive reporter covering the Penguins, Pirates and college sports. A Pittsburgh native, he is a Central Catholic and University of Colorado graduate. He joined the Trib in 2022 after covering the Colorado Buffaloes for Rivals and freelancing for the Denver Post. He can be reached at jguerriero@triblive.com.