Pirates lose injured bullpen project to Tigers almost immediately after arrival

Dugan Darnell, a late-blooming right-hander with solid strikeout stuff but shaky command, was designated for assignment last week when the Pittsburgh Pirates needed 40-man roster space. On Wednesday, he was claimed off waivers by the Detroit Tigers.

It's a homecoming of sorts for Darnell, who earned a 3.68 ERA through 66 innings with the Tigers in 2023. He was with the Pirates organization for less than a month, after being claimed off waivers from the Colorado Rockies in October despite his injury history. He missed the final few months of the 2024 season and began 2025 on the 60-day injured list. He wasn’t reinstated from the IL until August.

While Darnell never got a chance to pitch in Pittsburgh (or Indianapolis, for that matter), this move tells us quite a bit about where the Pirates stand with their fringe bullpen arms — and what their front office values right now.

Pirates lose depth arm they clearly weren't prioritizing in Tigers' waiver claim of Dugan Darnell

The fact that Darnell was claimed immediately by Detroit shows other clubs still see potential in his mid-90s fastball and high-spin breaking ball. But for Pittsburgh, this was a roster math casualty, not a targeted loss — he was likely behind a half-dozen similar righties on their depth chart.

Essentially, it signals that the Pirates value flexibility over long-term upside for relievers like Darnell. If they viewed him as a must-keep, he’d have survived the roster crunch.

This winter, the Pirates’ 40-man roster is a logjam of arbitration-eligible relievers and prospects who need protection from the Rule 5 Draft. Losing Darnell for nothing highlights the ongoing theme: you can’t keep everyone. As the front office (hopefully) prepares to protect high-upside names like Esmerlyn Valdez, arms like Darnell become expendable.

It's also a minor but telling reminder that the Pirates' bullpen picture is far from settled. Losing Darnell doesn’t change the 2026 bullpen outlook much, but it reinforces that the Pirates still need reliable middle-innings depth. Darnell’s departure — and the earlier outright of Michael Darrell-Hicks — means they’re clearing out fringier options, perhaps with the intent to add veterans on low-cost MLB or non-roster deals later in the offseason.

The Pirates didn’t “lose” a key arm in Darnell, but they did expose the limits of their bullpen depth and 40-man flexibility. Darnell could thrive in Detroit as a change-of-scenery project — and if he does, Pirates fans will groan that the team couldn’t find room for another live arm. But in practical terms, this is a symptom of roster triage, not a sign of a major mistake.