Pirates can’t pretend their internal fifth starter is a real solution

As the Pittsburgh Pirates search for a fifth starter, the temptation to look inward is understandable. After all, the 2025 campaign saw Carmen Mlodzinski post a 3.55 ERA across 99 innings. A 3.33 FIP. Career-best command. One homer allowed after June. Those are the kinds of numbers that make front offices squint, lean back, and start asking, “What if?”

But the Pirates can’t afford to ask that question again with Mlodzinski — not in the rotation, at least. Because we already know the answer.

On paper, Mlodzinski’s 2025 looks like the breakout of a flexible, modern arm — the kind of pitcher who can give you innings wherever you need them. In reality, his season split cleanly into two very different roles, and only one of them actually worked.

As a starter, it was a slog. The Pirates gave Mlodzinski nine cracks at the rotation to open the year, and the warning signs were immediate. He rarely worked deep into games, never once reached six innings, and consistently labored through lineups the second time around. That version of Mlodzinski wasn’t a stabilizer — he was a liability.

Mlodzinski's demotion to Triple-A Indianapolis wasn’t punitive. It was corrective. And when he returned, everything clicked.

Once Mlodzinski came back as a bulk reliever, the transformation was undeniable. Over the final three-plus months, he was one of the most effective arms on the staff, and frankly one of the more dominant multi-inning relievers in baseball. The strikeouts jumped. The damage evaporated. The confidence followed.

The Pirates simplified Mlodzinski's job, shortened his exposure, and — most importantly — let him lean into an arsenal that finally made sense. The curveball gave him vertical separation he’d never had. The splitter stopped being a liability. The bad breaking balls disappeared. And the rubber shift helped everything play up.

This wasn’t a pitcher discovering he could turn a lineup over three times. This was a pitcher discovering the exact limits of what he does best.

Pirates can best maximize Carmen Mlodzinksi's potential as a bulk reliever, not a starter

With a young, inexperienced rotation, the value of a reliable bulk reliever is enormous. Someone who can enter in the fourth or fifth, neutralize both sides of the plate, and give you two or three clean innings without burning the bullpen. Someone who can absorb volatility without creating more of it.

That’s not a lesser role. That’s structural integrity, and it's smart roster building.

Mlodzinski gave the Pirates 19 multi-inning relief outings last year. That’s not an accident. That’s a team discovering how to keep itself afloat when the starter falters early — something this staff will need a lot in 2026. Pretending he’s a fifth starter again doesn’t just risk undoing his progress. It weakens the entire pitching ecosystem around him.

Yes, Mlodzinski can start. He has. But that doesn’t mean he should. Versatility is not the same as interchangeability.

The Pirates already tried to force him into a traditional starter’s box, and the results were mediocre at best and damaging at worst. Asking him to do it again because the depth chart looks thin is how teams end up chasing innings instead of winning games.

The version of Carmen Mlodzinski that emerged in the second half of 2025 was legitimate. Impactful. Valuable. But he was legitimate because he was used correctly.

The Pirates don’t need to prove he can be a starter. They already proved he doesn’t have to be. And right now, with this rotation, they need him exactly where he is.