Morning Rundown: David Bednar Blows First Save Since April, Pirates Lose

For the first time since April 11 against the Houston Astros, David Bednar blew a save and two pitchers made their Pirates debut during the game.

Aug 06, 2023

There haven’t been a lot of certainties with the Pirates this season, more so after seeing Mitch Keller struggle as of late. Maybe the one thing they could count on has been closer David Bednar.

Making his second All-Star team, Bednar hadn’t blown a save since April 11 against the Houston Astros.

With a chance to take a 2-1 series lead against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Pirates called upon their closer to lock things down.

By time it was all said and done, Angel Perdomo allowed a based loaded single in the bottom of the 10th, and the Pirates will have to win on Sunday to avoid dropping three of four.

It was truly a remarkable stretch for Bednar, as in the 38 appearances in between blown saves he posted just a 1.13 ERA with 48 strikeouts (30.8 K%) across 39.2 innings pitched with 18 saves and just five total earned runs allowed.

Only four relief pitchers had a better ERA and WAR in that same time frame than Bednar.

Two pitchers made their Pirates debut on the mound Saturday, with Bailey Falter starting, and Andre Jackson pitching in relief.

The lefty Falter was solid, throwing 4+ plus innings before giving way to Jackson, who tossed three perfect frames, striking out three batters.

Jackson got up to 96 mph with the fastball, and got three whiffs on six swings with the changeup. Falter averaged 91.8 mph with his fastball, slightly faster than his season total, and he also got four whiffs with the pitch.