5 early relief pitchers Pirates should start eyeing for 2026 trade deadline

The Pittsburgh Pirates' bullpen woes reared their ugly head again last weekend against the Philadelphia Phillies. This time no man was spared, as the previously infallible Gregory Soto faltered, and Dennis Santana's slump continued as the Pirates blew a three-run lead and fell 11-9 in the series opener of what would become a sweep.

The most concerning thing is that the late-inning duo had been one of the stronger parts of the pen, and further proved that Ben Cherington's plan of banking on internal improvements is misguided at best and disingenuous at worst.

Soto is allowed a hiccup, but the fact of the matter is that the right-handers in the pen have struggled while the southpaws have excelled. Pittsburgh needs a bulk-inning arm, some middle relief help from the right side, and maybe some competition for Santana in the late innings.

Things can change as teams move up and down in the standings and sample sizes grow, but right now, there are a handful of relievers who could find themselves on the block and scratch a variety of different itches for the Pirates.

5 early/middle relief pitchers Pirates should start eyeing for 2026 trade deadline

Anthonio Senzatela (Colorado Rockies)

Antonio Senzatela has been a major disappointment over the years for the Colorado Rockies. Now in the final year of a five-year, $50.5 million extension signed ahead of the 2022 season, the Rockies decided at the end of last season that a change was needed.

After years of struggling as a starter, the Rockies finally moved Senzatela to the pen. As a result, his velocity is up from 95.1 miles per hour last season to 97.1 miles per hour this year. He's striking out more batters than ever before, with a career best 7.92 K/9 through May 17. Most importantly, he's held down the multi-inning role tremendously with a 1.27 ERA, 2.64 FIP, and 3.72 xFIP over 13 appearances and 28 1/3 innings.

Senzatela has spent his entire career in Denver's mile-high air. It's worth wondering whether or not he could be even better at regular altitude. Regardless, he'd be a cheap acquisition that fills a need.

Brenan Hanifee (Detroit Tigers)

Whether the Detroit Tigers are buyers or sellers at the trade deadline remains to be seen and likely hinges on how quickly they can get Tarik Skubal back from elbow surgery. But one player on their roster who might be available either way is Brenan Hanifee.

The Tigers have yet again demoted Hanifee to Triple-A, providing evidence that performance sometimes has little to do with roster decisions. If it did, a player like Hanifee, who has logged 98 2/3 innings with a 2.55 ERA since the start of 2024, would have a more secure hold on a roster spot.

The 28-year-old might not be a high-leverage guy, but he is effective in both long and middle relief settings. He's under team control through 2030, too, making him a potential hidden treasure that Pittsburgh can steal away.

Bryan Abreu (Houston Astros)

Bryan Abreu was once one of the most dominant relievers in the majors. For a four-year span from 2022 through 2025, Abreu ranked ninth among qualified relievers in ERA at 2.30 and 10th in strikeout rate at 34.3%.

But 2026 has been a nightmare for Abreu, largely due to a putrid 23.7% walk rate, which led to a ton of early meltdowns while filling in as the Astros closer in Josh Hader's absence. However, the tide might be turning for the 29-year-old free-agent-to-be.

Abreu had a bit of a layoff from April 14 until April 24. From that point through May 16, he's made seven appearances with a 1.17 ERA, 27.3% strikeout rate, and 15.2% walk rate. Better, but not perfect.

Abreu's pitching coach during his run of elite performance was none other than current Pirates pitching coach Bill Murphy. That might give Pittsburgh the inside track to fixing the former star, and if that happens, they might have a late-inning fallback option if Santana or Soto struggles.

Huascar Brazoban (New York Mets)

As we've discussed, the Pirates are fine from the left side. Evan Sisk and Mason Montgomery have been great bridges to the high-leverage innings, but they could use a right-handed complement. That's where Huascar Brazoban could come in.

Brazoban is no star, but with a career 3.56 ERA, he's consistently been a solid middle reliever since his debut in 2022. As the Mets' season spirals out of control, they might wind up undergoing a mid-summer sell-off. Brazoban is both cost-controlled but aging at 36 years old, giving Pittsburgh a potential opportunity to swipe away an option who is better than his price tag.

Garret Whitlock (Boston Red Sox)

Getting some sort of competition for the setup man role for Dennis Santana makes some sense after he has begun to scuffle and been ousted from the closer role by Gregory Soto. High-leverage arms tend to be expensive, and while some might want a different Red Sox late-inning reliever, Whitlock might be the better option for 2026 and beyond.

Whitlock racks up a ton of strikeouts and does a decent job limiting walks. He's a bulldog in high-leverage situations, allowing a minuscule .148/.232/.267 line for his career when the heat is on. His contract is up at the end of this season, but he has relatively reasonable club options for the next two seasons with an $8.25 million salary for 2027 and a $10.5 million salary for 2028. Making a deal for him if the Boston sells could solve an issue this year, while filling a need for the foreseeable future.

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