Bednar's spring debut a welcome sight for depleted Bucs bullpen

BRADENTON, Fla. -- The unofficial word on David Bednar's Opening Day status is, “I sure hope so.”

At least, those were the words of the two-time All-Star closer Thursday, before the Pirates’ 3-2 loss to the Blue Jays at LECOM Park.

If nothing else, Thursday was a big step for Bednar's potential return. After being briefly shut down because of some right lat tightness earlier this month, he finally got into a Spring Training game and tossed a scoreless frame against the Blue Jays.

"I was pretty happy about being around the zone, staying in the lanes pretty much,” Bednar said afterwards. “Obviously would like to get ahead a little more, but most importantly, [I] felt good.”

The overall line looked very Bednar-like, logging a strikeout while working around two hits for his shutout inning. He wasn’t as sharp as he would normally be on March 21, but then again, it looked better than a first outing of the spring.

It was far from perfect, but it was something Bednar could exit feeling good about.

“I think there's little things, but those are very easy tweaks,” Bednar said. “I'm looking forward to the next step."

That’s good news for the Pirates, who are in a potentially sticky spot when it comes to their bullpen.

After bracing themselves for the news that Dauri Moreta would be out an extended period of time, the team’s strikeout specialist went under the knife for UCL reconstruction surgery this week, ending his 2024 campaign.

Additionally, Colin Holderman is bouncing back from an illness that has run through the clubhouse, while Carmen Mlodzinski experienced some forearm tightness after his last outing on March 14, which has limited him to just playing catch of late. Neither of those injuries appear to be long-term issues, but in terms of being ready for Opening Day, the Pirates very well could be a little short in the bullpen, or have a couple guys who aren’t 100% out of the gate.

That makes having Bednar all the more important. Pittsburgh manager Derek Shelton said the follow-up with Bednar on Friday will be key for determining if he will be ready for Opening Day. The Pirates have four more games this spring, and assuming that the Friday check-up goes well, Bednar will pitch again in one of them.

“He looked good,” Shelton said. “He was able to pitch with a runner on, which was good. He got the double-play ball. He was able to throw the split and the curveball. Overall a solid first outing coming off the injury.”

Bednar knows this decision is out of his hands, and he knows that being ready for the vast majority of the season is better than letting something potentially linger. But his preference is to be on the mound in Miami on March 28.

"Obviously that's the goal, but I think we'll have to check in with everybody and see where everybody's at,” Bednar said. “But I'm feeling good. Just going to take it day by day."

Contreras to 'pen
After tossing just 1 2/3 innings in his last outing and then one frame Thursday, Shelton said postgame that the team currently views Roansy Contreras as a reliever.

“I think we saw the stuff playing in shorter stints, in shorter innings being able to execute the fastball and the slider,” Shelton said. “That’s not to say at some point there’s not a transition back, but right now we see the best fit for us is a bullpen guy.”

The change in roles probably helps Contreras’ chances of making the Opening Day team and staying with the organization, since he is out of Minor League options, but it does take away one of the young pitchers that was in competition for one of the team’s two open rotation spots.

Contreras’ stuff has looked better this spring compared to when he was demoted to the Minors last July, but his control has been a major issue, walking 13 over 13 1/3 innings.

“I can’t explain what it is,” Contreras said on March 13, through interpreter Mendy Lopez. “... I didn’t feel the command with my pitches. I’m not sure what’s causing the inconsistency.”

Contreras struck out the side and allowed one hit pitching in the ninth inning Thursday. He exclusively threw his four-seamer and slider.