The Pittsburgh Pirates have a bit of a question mark with this team. This unit isn’t as stable as the team’s starting lineup, which was shipped to the New York Yankees last year, so his closer role goes to former bullpen mainstay David Bednar. That leaves Dennis Santana as the team’s possible closer, who has been a pleasant surprise since the Pirates signed him from the Yankees in 2024. Santana took over the role last season after Bednar was traded and performed well.
Since becoming a Pirate, Santana has gone 5-6 with a 2.28 ERA, .890 WHIP, 110 strikeouts, and 17 saves in 114 innings pitched, including 16 last year. The Pirates believe he has the full-time closer job locked down, but the 29-year-old right-hander has never held that role for a full season before. He’ll have plenty of opportunities to show it as the team looks to increase its win total this year.
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His primary starter is 31-year-old Greg Soto, who arrived as a free agent. He’ll have save opportunities, but his primary role is as a power lefty with a high-90s fastball and swing-and-miss ability. He had a 4.18 ERA last year but struck out 70 batters in 60 innings.
Your middle of the pack looks like right-hander Karemen Mlozinski, right-hander John Ramirez, right-hander Justin Lawrence (who is a veteran and could be a starting option if he ends up healthy), right-hander Kyle Nicholas and left-hander Mason Montgomery, who is one of the few left-handers on this roster and should get a lot of opportunities simply because of that fact.
Other options on the current 40-man roster include right-handers Cam Sanders, Isaac Mattson, Ryan Harbin, Brandon Bidois and left-hander Evan Sisk. If the Pirates want Thomas Harrington to get a few innings, he’s a bullpen option. Obviously, you won’t see all of these players very often as some of them will move up and down, but the organization is high on Bidois, a 24-year-old rookie from Australia, and Harbin has a 90-plus fastball, so there’s some talent here to keep an eye on.
But much of the unit’s success relies on Santana and Soto. If Santana can continue his work and extrapolate last year’s success into a full season, and if veteran Soto can prove he still has some steam, this team will be in good hands. Where will the Buccaneers’ confidence go from there if they fall into trouble?