Pirates place struggling reliever on Injured List after brutal start to season

The Pittsburgh Pirates’ bullpen has taken another hit, as right-hander Colin Holderman was recently placed on the 15-day injured list with a right knee sprain. In his place, the Pirates have promoted fellow right-handed reliever Chase Shugart from Triple-A.

Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette broke the news of the recent roster move after Shugart showed up with a locker at PNC Park.

It’s been a rough go of things for Holderman. The set-up man dominated during the first half of 2024, with just a 1.67 ERA, 3.01 FIP, and 1.22 WHIP through his first 37.2 innings. Holderman struck out 28.8% of opponents, albeit with an 11.3% walk rate. However, his final 13.2 innings of the season saw him allow 11 earned runs. He only struck out 10 opponents, and handed out seven walks. He allowed four home runs in this home stretch, but had only allowed two prior.

Despite his late season struggles, Holderman was given another chance at setting up games to start 2025, but it hasn’t been pretty, to say the least. Holderman has already given up five earned runs on four walks, six hits, and one home run. For reference, Holderman didn’t give up his fifth earned run until July 3 last season.

Chase Shugart replaces the injured Colin Holderman on the Pirates' active roster.

Taking his place on the roster is Chase Shugart. The Bucs acquired Shugart this past offseason from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for minor leaguer and 2024 13th-round pick Matt McShane. Shugart has only pitched 8.2 innings in the Major Leagues, all coming last season with the Boston Red Sox.

Shugart pitched as a swingman at Triple-A last year, starting five of his 36 games, and tossing 70.2 innings. He had a 4.46 ERA, 4.21 FIP, and 1.37 WHIP, all of which were slightly better than league average. He struck out just over a quarter of opponents with a sub-1.00 HR/9, but had a 10.2% walk rate. Shugart uses five pitches with regularity, including a sweeper, cutter, sinker, changeup, and four-seam fastball. On the plus side, he had a 104 Stuff+ mark in his brief cameo in the Major Leagues last season.

The backend of the Pirates’ bullpen hasn’t gotten off to a good start. Losing Holderman to an injury hurts the depth chart, but something was still clearly wrong, given his performance to open 2025. Shugart has displayed decent stuff, and could be a decent lower-leverage placeholder for now. Hopefully, when Holderman returns, he looks more like he did in 2023, and during the first few months of 2024.