Breaking down Pirates new bullpen roles after much needed deadline revamp

If Ben Cherington entered the trade deadline with the goal of patching the biggest weakness on the Pittsburgh Pirates’ roster, it's safe to say he succeeded by rebuilding the entire bullpen hierarchy.

Pittsburgh entered deadline week with a 4.34 relief ERA and only 22 saves in 42 opportunities. Cherington responded by adding Luke Weaver, Camilo Doval, Lake Bachar and Kirby Yates. The only top-30 Pirates prospects traded to assemble this group were Sammy Stafura (No. 9) and Omar Alfonzo (No. 28). Neither appeared on MLB’s top-100 list. Considering how many established relief options Pittsburgh added, that's impressive work from Cherington.

Adding four established relief arms was necessary, given that Carmen Mlodzinski likely won't be part of that bullpen arrangement for now. Mitch Keller’s season-ending teres major injury creates an opening in the rotation, and Mlodzinski is the obvious candidate to move back into a starting role. Pittsburgh’s deadline additions made that transition possible without leaving another major hole in relief.

Breaking down newly defined roles in Pirates' post-trade deadline bullpen hierarchy

Weaver should begin as the favorite for ninth-inning work. The 32-year-old owns a 1.84 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 45 strikeouts in 44 innings. Right-handed hitters are batting an absurd .099 with a .322 OPS against him, making Weaver the obvious choice when the heart of an opponent’s right-handed lineup is due. He may not receive every save opportunity, but he gives Don Kelly the proven late-inning anchor this bullpen lacked.

Mason Montgomery should be the primary setup man and Weaver’s most likely closing alternative. The southpaw has a 3.72 ERA with 72 strikeouts in 46 innings, and lefties have struggled to produce anything against him. Rather than assigning him permanently to one inning, Kelly can deploy Montgomery whenever the middle of an opposing lineup features multiple dangerous lefties.

Doval slots naturally into the seventh inning, although his previous closing experience gives Pittsburgh another option when Weaver or Montgomery is unavailable. His 4.54 ERA with the Yankees is uninspiring, but right-handed hitters batted only .143 against him, and his road ERA was 1.86. Pittsburgh is betting that his upper-90s arsenal will play better outside Yankee Stadium.

Yates, Bachar and Yohan Ramírez create a deeper middle-relief tier. Yates posted a 3.95 ERA with 36 strikeouts and 12 walks in 27.1 innings for the Angels. He brings extensive closing experience but no longer needs to carry a late-inning role every night. Bachar recorded a 3.84 ERA across 58 2/3 innings and can provide multiple innings or serve as an opener.

Ramírez has quietly delivered a 3.00 ERA and 69 strikeouts over 60 innings, including a 0.46 ERA across his past 15 appearances. His stamina also makes him useful in bullpen games.

The two remaining lefties should be deployed more selectively. Gregory Soto has a 3.59 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 14 saves, but the deadline additions allow him to return to a matchup-dependent fireman role. He can enter in the sixth or seventh to extinguish a rally, or face a difficult left-handed hitter near the end of an inning without automatically being asked to record the final three outs.

Evan Sisk, currently on the 15-day IL after posting a 2.23 ERA with 43 strikeouts in 36.1 innings, profiles as the secondary matchup lefty. He should generally work in the fifth or sixth inning and appear more frequently when Soto is unavailable, although he could occasionally be used against a left-handed hitter later in a close game once activated (likely in the coming days).

Wilber Dotel gives the Pirates another potential long-relief option with the opportunity for the occasional spot start along with Mlodzinski. His ability to provide multiple innings would help protect the rest of the bullpen after short starts and make him useful alongside Bachar and Ramírez in games requiring unconventional pitching plans.

The Pirates also have legitimate minor-league depth on the 40-man roster. Isaac Mattson, Brandon Eisert, Noah Murdock, Antwone Kelly, Khristian Curtis, Hunter Barco and Thomas Harrington provide a mixture of short-relief, multi-inning and spot-starting options at Triple-A.

This is no longer a bullpen built around hoping the same two relievers are available. Cherington gave Kelly specialized arms for every situation — and enough depth to survive the inevitable injuries and workload concerns that arrive during a playoff chase.

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