Dennis

Santana

Santana probably would have allowed the automatic runner to score in the 10th, but the Cardinals foolishly let Michael Siani get thrown out at the plate on a single with no outs. Santana retired the other five batters he faced. He still seems like the Pirates reliever worth rostering at the moment.

The Pirates played matchups today, using Dennis Santana against the top of the Yankees order in the eighth. He retired Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger and Aaron Judge consecutively. Borucki, though, let the Pirates down by giving up three hits and a walk to the six batters he faced. The Pirates did go on to win in extra innings, but that this worked out so poorly for them is probably good news for those who picked up Santana.

Holderman struggled with a 9.64 ERA in five appearances so far this season. Now the 29-year-old right-hander hits the injured list with a sprained right knee. Holderman entered the season as one of the top setup men for the Pirates. With David Bednar in the minors and Holderman on the IL, Dennis Santana has a clear path to the closer role in Pittsburgh at the moment.

The simple fact that he was used in the fifth doesn’t seem great for his chances of seeing save opportunities. The Pirates also used Dennis Santana down 9-4 in the ninth today, and he was charged with a run. Both pitchers had a couple of days off coming into this one, so they should be available Sunday. Santana appears to be the favorite for saves on the Pirates at the moment.

It’s the first save of the season for Santana. It’s not likely to be the last, as David Bednar was optioned to Triple-A on Tuesday, leaving Santana as a logical option for the ninth inning. He did issue a walk in this outing and didn’t get a strikeout, but still an effective first chance for Santana. He’s worth a look.

Was this the only way to get Derek Shelton to stop using him in the ninth? Bednar faced nine hitters in three appearances to begin the year and retired just three, giving up four runs and taking two losses to go along with a lone save. He did seem to be unlucky in the process — much of the contact against him was soft — but given how bad he was in the second half of last year and this spring, no further patience was warranted. The Pirates will probably turn to Colin Holderman and/or Dennis Santana in save chances. Neither seems like a must-grab player in shallow leagues right away. Carmen Mlodzinski might be more interesting if the Pirates opt to remove him from the rotation and put him back in short relief.

This was after Colin Holderman blew a two-run lead in the eighth. Bednar gave up a triple to Nick Fortes (it should have been a double, but Oneil Cruz played in badly), intentionally walked Xavier Edwards and surrendered a walkoff single to Kyle Stowers that probably would have been a triple under normal circumstances. Bednar isn’t necessarily permanently broken, but he’s shown nothing of late to deserve responsibilities late in games. The Pirates don’t have any great alternatives at closer, but Dennis Santana and Holderman both have to be better than Bednar is right now.

It’s unclear if the Pirates will have Bednar close initially, but it’s not like they appear to have any particularly strong alternatives. Bednar, unfortunately, has looked more like a mop-up man all spring. His velocity is down 1-2 mph from last year, when he mostly struggled, and he wound up allowing 10 runs — nine earned — over eight innings in Grapefruit League play. Dennis Santana and Colin Holderman are the other candidates to factor into the mix for saves in Pittsburgh.

David Bednar’s struggles have set up the possibility that Santana or Colin Holderman could take over as the Pirates’ closer. Santana seems like the better option based on his results last year, but his velocity is down about one mph this spring and he’s settled for three strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. It’s hard to feel very good about anyone in the Pittsburgh pen right now.

When asked if Bednar would open the season in that role, Shelton responded, “I don’t think right now we have that. I think right now we’ll go and figure out what we’re going to do from there.” That’s not quite the vote of confidence that most established closers usually receive. It may have something to do with Bednar’s 14.40 ERA in Grapefruit League action on the heels of his underwhelming 2024 campaign. Colin Holderman and Dennis Santana are the most likely candidates to step into the ninth inning if Bednar continues to struggle.