Pirates' Spring NRIs -- Veteran Pitchers

Can anybody break into the bullpen?

Hunter Stratton Photo Credit: WTM

Veteran pitchers typically make up the biggest group of NRIs, usually due to bullpen competition. This year is no exception, although realistically, there may be only one spot open. Still, there are four NRIs who pitched in the majors for the Pirates in recent seasons.

Carson Fulmer: The 8th overall pick in the 2015 draft, Fulmer has survived on the aura of being such an early pick. The White Sox rushed him to the majors in 2016, and it’s been a struggle ever since. He’s bounced back and forth all those years between AAA and the majors, seldom pitching well at either level. He’s gradually moved into more of a relief role, although not entirely. Fulmer pitched poorly for the Angels in AAA in 2023, but they brought him back in 2024, and he spent most of the season in the majors with them in a swing role. He had probably his best year, with a 4.15 ERA. The Pirates may see him more as starting depth than as a bullpen candidate.

Chance of making the team: Low.

Isaac Mattson: Mattson is unusual for a finesse righty in that he’s tended to have high walk and K rates. Walks have especially been a problem since he reached the upper minors. He pitched well without dominating in AAA for the Pirates last year, then appeared briefly in the majors and walked five in five and a third innings. He became a free agent after the Pirates outrighted him in November, but re-signed with them on a minor league deal. He seems like a much better candidate to appear for them during the season than to make the team out of spring training.

Chance of making the team: Low.

Tanner Rainey: Rainey presents a straightforward issue — Will his stuff return to where it was before he had Tommy John surgery in 2022? He was usually an effective reliever for Washington, although he had some ups and downs, mainly related to wildness. After the surgery, his formerly upper-90s velocity dropped 2-4 mph, and his slider was less effective. He stuck with the Nationals throughout 2024, but they used him strictly — REALLY strictly — in white flag roles, and he had a poor season. If he gets to spring training and is touching triple digits, as he did in the past, he might have a shot. It seems far more likely that the Pirates will want to see what happens in AAA first.

Chance of making the team: Low.

Yohan Ramirez: Ramirez has made a career out of being a guy teams add, through waivers or similar means, when they need an arm in the pen. He’s been all over the place, including about half a season with the Pirates in both 2022 and 2023. In fact, that was his best stretch out of many in the majors. He even had the exact same ERA, 3.67, with them in both seasons. Teams keep picking Ramirez up because he usually pitches respectably without being great (his control isn’t good), although he had a rough 2024 with five (!) separate teams. He’s probably been typecast as a guy who’s best as AAA depth, but you wouldn’t wring your hands about having to employ him.

Chance of making the team: Low.

Yerry Rodriguez: Rodriguez features a mid-90s fastball with a lot of movement that misses bats. What’s held him back is that he lacks a useful secondary pitch. His control isn’t good, either. He’s been torched in several major league trials and hasn’t pitched well in AAA, either. Most of the pitchers you see here should rank ahead of him for chances in the majors unless he really shows something first in AAA.

Chance of making the team: None.

Burch Smith: Smith has moved around a lot during a 14-year career. That includes a two-year hiatus due to Tommy John and another two years mostly spent in Asia. He was a starter most of the way through the minors but has pitched mainly in relief in 152 major league games. He hasn’t been terribly effective in those games, with a 5.79 ERA and 1.51 WHIP. He’s generally done well as a starter in AAA. Smith throws four pitches, usually with good control and without missing a large number of bats. He returned from his stint in Asia in 2024 and got into 50 major league games, evenly divided between the Marlins and Orioles, all in relief. He had a 4.95 ERA and 1.35 WHIP combined. He’s another guy the Pirates may view more as AAA starting depth than as a bullpen option.

Chance of making the team: Low.

Hunter Stratton: Stratton pitched briefly for the Pirates in 2023 and was one of their bullpen mainstays in 2024, except when he was hurt. He was out for an extended period with a triceps strain and then missed roughly the last month after a cringeworthy knee injury. It seemed as though he’d be out quite a while and the Pirates removed him from the roster after the season, then signed him to a minor league deal for 2025. His recovery went well and he’s expected to be ready in the spring. He put up a 3.58 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 36 games in 2024. Oddly, he’s had very low walk and K rates in the majors but high walk and K rates in AAA. Stratton’s out pitch is a slider, and he has a large platoon split. He made the team as an NRI a year ago, so it could happen again if he’s fully healthy.

Chance of making the team: Moderate.

Eddy Yean: Yean was supposed to be the big return in the Josh Bell trade, but he struggled for three years at the two class A levels, with ERAs over 5.00 every year. His control wasn’t good, and he didn’t show the strong slider he was supposed to have. In 2024, with Altoona, Yean suddenly started making some progress, mostly with his control, as he got his BB/9 down from the 4-5 range to 2.6. He was still more hittable than you’d like to see. The Pirates didn’t add him to the 40-man roster after the season, and he became a free agent, but he re-signed with them on a minor league deal. The team apparently thinks he could still turn into something, but he’s not ready for the majors yet.

Chance of making the team: None.

Ryan Borucki: The lefty Borucki, of course, was a key reliever for the Pirates in the second half of 2023 after initially joining them on a minor league deal. He put up a 2.45 ERA and 0.74 WHIP in 38 games. He originally came up through the Blue Jays’ system as a well-regarded prospect, but he’s been plagued by injuries almost continually since his chance at getting established in the majors arrived in 2018. It happened again in 2024 when he went out after a few appearances with triceps inflammation. His rehab apparently didn’t go well, as it was shut down at one point. He finally rejoined the Pirates in September but didn’t pitch well. He left as a free agent after the season and is back on another minor league deal. With two lefties signing as free agents and another, Joey Wentz, out of options, Borucki’s odds of making the team to start the season probably aren’t great. It won’t help that two of those three, like Borucki himself, have large career platoon splits. He should have a good chance, though, of reaching Pittsburgh at some point if he’s fully recovered.

Chance of making the team: Low.

Ryder Ryan: Ryan is returning to the Pirates for the second year in a row on a minor league deal. They called him up twice in 2024 and ultimately outrighted him both times. He’d previously thrown just one inning in the majors. Ryan is a fastball/slider pitcher who’s generally had good control in the minors. He didn’t pitch all that well for Indianapolis last year, posting a 4.61 ERA with a low K rate and some gopher ball problems. The callups had more to do with the team’s bullpen falling apart. He got into 15 games with the Pirates and had a 5.66 ERA and 1.45 WHIP. He makes the most sense as AAA depth.

Chance of making the team: Low.