Bednar's report on little bro's stuff: 'Electric'

PITTSBURGH -- David Bednar has jumped on the radar of MLB fans this season. With a high-spin heater, a well-tunneled curveball and a splitter he learned from Hideo Nomo, he’s produced a 2.51 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP in 14 games with his hometown Pirates.

But there may be an even more advanced Bednar entering the Majors this year. David’s younger brother, Will, has risen up the Draft ranks and has a firm shot to go in the first two rounds of this year’s MLB Draft.

“His [stuff] is electric,” David said.

Will, a sophomore at Mississippi State and No. 34 on the Top 150 Draft Prospects list, is no stranger to top-tier competition in the loaded Southeastern Conference. Every weekend, he’s facing other top Draft prospects.

Will’s biggest test on paper? He went head to head with No. 1 overall Draft prospect Jack Leiter on April 24, and he came out on the stronger end. Leiter served up four runs to the Aggies on six hits (two homers) and three walks. Will held the Commodores to one run in five innings with eight strikeouts.

“Those games are a lot of fun, especially pitching against Vanderbilt,” Will said. “It’s an extremely good team ... but I just try to keep it one pitch at a time and not let the moment get too big.”

Though Will was gifted with a great pitching arm -- a “long lever” as his father, Andy, called it -- he’s had to move away from the days where he could survive on his fastball and his slider. Now, he’s learning a changeup that has moved from a lefty slider shape to a fastball-designed offering.

That’s not to say Will’s fastball and slider won’t play. They absolutely will. He sits in the low-to-mid 90s with his heater, which has good late life. Then, the former Mars Fightin’ Planet standout keeps batters off balance with a frisbee slider that is out of this world, leading to 80 strikeouts in 49 innings so far this season.

“The slider is just unreal,” David said, “and then paired with that heater, those two are a tough one-two combo.”

It’s been that way since high school for Will, but it didn’t come quite as naturally for David. He grew into an effective pitcher later in his high school tenure. When he was a sophomore, he was actually the starting catcher and pitched only 15 or 20 innings, according to his dad. As much as David had to prove himself in the Minors, he needed to be twice as good for the same opportunity on the mound given he was the coach’s son.

“In the long run, actually, I think it saved some bullets in his arm,” his dad, Andy, said.

Meanwhile, Will had a heavier workload from the beginning. With his advanced arsenal, that led to a lot of looks from scouts and more video on him, but it also may have had some minor, unintended consequences, as Will was sidelined for the majority of his senior season with biceps tendonitis.

“I think some of it had to do with throwing hard too early,” Will said, “but I think more of it was just making sure I got on a solid routine of arm care, pre- and post-throw.”

With that established and few setbacks while at Mississippi State, Will should have no problem finding a suitor in the MLB Draft. Being ranked at No. 34 on the Top 200 Draft prospects list, he has an outside shot of being taken by his hometown Pirates at No. 37.

But no matter where Will lands, he’ll almost certainly have an easier time than his brother.

When Draft day came around for David in 2016, he didn’t have an agent. He kept in touch with a local area scout while he journeyed to New England to play in the Cape Cod League on a temporary contract. On a soggy day with some rain showers, David kept pulling his phone out of his back pocket and checking it.

“I'm glued to it,” David said. “‘Oh my god, man. Come on, come on.’ Then as each round keeps going by I'm like, ‘Oh man.’ Just hoping and praying.”

With the Draft ticker running during batting practice, David saw name after name selected before him. As the 30th round approached, Bednar’s phone battery was at critically low levels as he got stretched out on the field.

Finally, he got a text: “Hey, if we do this you’re good, right?” The Padres were ready to select him in the 35th round.

“I’m like, ‘Hell yeah!’” David said. “Two minutes later, I get a call and it’s official.”

Waiting games are nothing new for David. He had no college scouts in high school, much less Draft scouts. He didn’t commit to Lafayette until Halloween of his senior year. There was a player ahead of him on the scholarship list who was in the running to be accepted to an Ivy League school, and fortunately for David, that acceptance came and the Pittsburgh native traveled to the eastern half of Pennsylvania for college.

And as a 35th-rounder, he was never a shoe-in to make a Major League roster. Still, he accomplished the task nearly three years to the date, debuting with San Diego on July 29, 2019. Now, he’s in leverage situations routinely for his hometown Pirates, one of the bright spots and potential key pieces in a team looking to the future.

So although the younger brother has the higher pedigree at Draft time, he’s got a lot to learn from the elder Bednar. David watches every start Will makes for the Aggies that he can catch. He’s not afraid to give insight when Will asks for his brother’s thoughts or to give a reassuring word, like he did when Will lasted only three innings with six runs allowed vs. Ole Miss on April 17.

“David was one of the first people to call him and say, ‘Hey, it's just one start,’” Andy said. “... To be a relief pitcher at any level, you know you can't get too high with the highs and low with the lows. And he's really tried to pass that on to Will.”

Will has learned a lot in the process -- pitch selection in certain counts, what progression looks like, how to handle the mental side of the game -- and it should only make him stronger as a pro.

“He's really been a great role model for me, and he's been very helpful throughout this whole process,” Will said of David. “And he's been really eager to help answer any questions I have for him."

Pitching in the Majors is the dream for Will, but he needs to stay focused on whomever he faces in his next start with Mississippi State.

Will said this was his mindset as he prepared for a start against South Carolina on May 8. He struck out 13 batters in six innings.

If he keeps doing that, he won’t be dreaming for much longer.