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Projecting the Pittsburgh Pirates Opening Day Bullpen
By Marty Leap
The Opening Day locks
For one reason or another, there are likely four pitchers who are a lock to be in the Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen on Opening Day. For some of these pitchers it is a lack of minor league options, for some it’s due to their pedigree and track record. While for others, it’s a combination of the two.
The five pitchers that appear to be locks, or close to, for the Opening Day bullpen are Keone Kela, Kyle Crick, Nick Burdi, and Michael Feliz.
Kela’s is self explanatory, he is the Pirates’ closer. End of discussion. As for Crick, his is rather cut and dry as well. Despite struggling in the final three months of the 2019 season, Crick was still lights out in 2018 and will likely begin the season as one of Kela’s main set up men. Also, a lot of Crick’s struggles in 2019 could likely be contributed to pitching in what became a toxic environment for him in Pittsburgh’s clubhouse. Look for a bounce back season from Crick in 2020.
As for Burdi, there may not be a single pitcher in the bullpen with a higher ceiling. The former Rule 5 Draft pick has a triple digits fastball and a wipe out slider. However, he has never been able to stay healthy in his career.
Because of a nerve issue that required surgery, Burdi pitched in just 8.2 innings for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2019. Due to this, he still carries Rule 5 status and must make the team’s Opening Day roster or else they will have to return him to the Minnesota Twins. Burdi will be in the ‘pen on Opening Day.
As for Feliz, he is out of minor league options. Additionally, he quietly had a strong season for the Pirates in 2019. Taking away his disaster of an outing when he was used as an opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Feliz owned a 3.21 ERA, 31.3% strikeout rate and he limited opposing batters to a .384 slugging percentage in 56 innings as a reliever. While his 11.2% walk rate and 1.61 HR/9 were both higher than you would like to see, Feliz has the stuff to be a quality MLB reliever. New pitching coach Oscar Marin will be looking to help Feliz tap into that potential this season.