Only if you follow MLB closely, you probably know about David Bednar: since he plays on the Pittsburgh Pirates, he probably doesn’t get the kind of press he deserves.
He is the Bucs’ closer, and he is one of the best relievers in baseball.
Bednar came over to the Pirates in the Joe Musgrove trade with the San Diego Padres and the New York Mets (it was a three-team trade).
He has done nothing but dominate since he put on a Pirates jersey.
“Last calendar year, lowest ERA in MLB: 1.07 – David Bednar, Pirates 1.41 – Ryan Helsley, STL 1.42 – Josh Hader, MIL 1.51 – Blake Treinen, LAD 1.58 – Emmanuel Clase, CLE 1.65 – Camilo Doval, SF 1.67 – Dominic Leone, SF (since 6/17/2021, min. 40 IP),” Joe Block, a member of the Pirates’ broadcast team, tweeted.
Last calendar year, lowest ERA in MLB:
1.07 – David Bednar, Pirates
1.41 – Ryan Helsley, STL
1.42 – Josh Hader, MIL
1.51 – Blake Treinen, LAD
1.58 – Emmanuel Clase, CLE
1.65 – Camilo Doval, SF
1.67 – Dominic Leone, SF(since 6/17/2021, min. 40 IP)
— Joe Block (@joe_block) June 17, 2022
For every nine innings Bednar pitched in the last calendar year, he has allowed a meager 1.07 runs.
That’s some incredible run-prevention prowess.
One Of The Pirates’ Most Valuable Trade Chips
A pitcher can’t be that good preventing runs if he doesn’t miss many bats.
That’s the case with Bednar: he is very good at making hitters swing and miss.
This season, for example, his strikeout percentage is 35.6% in 31.2 frames, a well-above average rate.
His ERA is an excellent 1.14.
Bednar is 27 years old and controllable for several more seasons, which makes his trade value very high.
In case the Pirates decide to capitalize on that value right now, there will surely be plenty of interested teams.
It’s highly unlikely he is traded this year or next, however: the Pirates should probably try to extend him in a couple of years, and if they fail in their attempt, then they will probably explore the possibility of shopping him.
They are not very good as a team, but Bednar is one of the best players they have.
They are not going to give him away.
NEXT: David Bednar Is Putting Up Must-See Numbers In Pittsburgh