Mason Montgomery's absurd Pirates scoreless streak deserves far more attention

It's a funny thing how the Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen went from being a terrible weakness to a legitimate strength. From the trade deadline onward, Pirates relievers have combined for a 3.19 ERA, ranking sixth in the majors, after posting a 20th-ranked 4.31 mark from Opening Day through August 3.

While the external additions have helped, the emergence of Mason Montgomery has really driven the turnaround. At the end of July, we wondered why Pittsburgh hadn't committed to handing him the ball in the ninth consistently, and now that they finally have, it's paying massive dividends.

Montgomery is riding a wave of 18 straight scoreless appearances. He's been flat-out dominant and seems to have secured the role both now and in the future.

The 26-year-old is now 10-for-12 in save opportunities this season, and by fWAR ranks as the 15th-most valuable reliever in the league with 1.6 fWAR. To add further context, his 54 2/3 innings are the third-fewest among those top 15 arms.

Now, with the scoreless streak, he's lowered his ERA to 2.87, while the underlying metrics like xERA (2.59), FIP (2.31), and xFIP (2.20). It has marked Montgomery's ascension into the ranks of the truly elite.

Mason Montgomery's streak has solidified his role and set the Pirates' bullpen up for a promising 2027

The southpaw has also become one of the league's best strikeout artists, with his strikeout rate of 37.8% ranking third among relievers, behind only Mason Miller and Andres Muñoz. He's No. 1 among lefties. For those who were paying attention, this phenomenal breakout was brewing back in spring training.

The best part is that Montgomery is under control through 2030. Closers, especially the dominant ones, get paid big money on the open market, so having one on the cheap for years to come is a huge benefit.

As we have seen, since the trade deadline, the whole unit has undergone a night-and-day transformations since the trade deadline, and with the exception of the injured Kirby Yates, everyone they brought in is under team control for at least next season.

It's logical to expect that Pittsburgh's bullpen will be a strength in 2027, giving the club one less hole to worry about during the offseason. On top of that, the savings they'll enjoy from Montgomery rising to grab the closer role mean more money will be available for other needs this winter.

The only regret is that the Pirates didn't try Montgomery out in the closer role earlier. If they had, they might have avoided some of the blown save issues that plagued them for a good chunk of the season, and would be sitting in a stronger playoff position today.

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