Pirates waiting until end of season for closer by committee strategy is Derek Shelton indictment

Heading into the bottom of the ninth inning Saturday with a 3-0 lead over the Cleveland Guardians, the Pittsburgh Pirates faced a conundrum.

It was a textbook save situation, but manager Derek Shelton had announced just one day earlier that usual closer David Bednar had been removed from the role amid a tumultuous second half. So, which member of the Pirates' bullpen could be trusted to preserve the lead and close out the win for his team?

Here's an idea – how about the guy who had done it 325 times before in his 15-year MLB career?

Indeed, Aroldis Chapman came in and put on a predictably dominant performance, recording a pair of strikeouts and securing the victory for the Pirates. The 36-year-old has spent the majority of the season as Pittsburgh's eighth-inning setup man – a role he reprised Monday against the Chicago Cubs after the Pirates rallied to take a 4-3 lead into the bottom of the eighth – but his résumé as a closer seems to make him a no-brainer to replace Bednar for the time being (or, preferably, for the rest of the season).

Shelton went with Dennis Santana to close things out Monday against the Cubs – also a fine choice, as the right-hander has produced a 3.09 ERA in 27 appearances for the Pirates as a midseason waivers pickup after the New York Yankees designated him for assignment. Santana proved to be up for the challenge, retiring three straight batters to pick up his first save of the season.

Shelton has said that the Pirates will continue to take the "closer by committee" approach to the ninth inning moving forward for as long as Bednar remains out of the role. The early returns have certainly been positive; but at this point, it's too little, too late.

Pirates waiting until end of season for closer by committee strategy is Derek Shelton indictment

We don't know what exactly has gone wrong for Bednar, but it would appear that his second-half struggles can be traced back to his stint on the injured list with a left oblique strain. He returned from the IL on July 12, which was around the time his season began to fall apart.

After a first half that at one point saw Bednar convert 19 consecutive save opportunities, the two-time MLB All-Star's second half has been downright abysmal. In the month of August alone, his ERA ballooned up to 10.97 in 11 appearances.

The common narrative has been that Bednar's poor showing in August forced Shelton's hand. But frankly, Shelton's hand should have been forced a long time ago. It's not like there weren't any signs that Bednar's horrific month was coming; in 50 appearances this season as the team's closer, he has notched a 3-7 record, a 6.32 ERA in 47 innings and six blown saves. Following the All-Star break in mid-July, Bednar plummeted to a new low, posting an 8.62 ERA in 16 appearances.

It's not like the Pirates didn't have any other viable bullpen options, either. Santana has been a pleasant surprise since Pittsburgh picked him up off waivers in June, and Chapman has racked up 326 saves in what's likely to be a Hall of Fame career.

In other words, the question shouldn't be, what are the Pirates going to do with Bednar? It should be, what in the world took Shelton so long to replace him in the closer role?

Whatever the answer is, it's not good enough. The Pirates were within striking distance of a playoff spot after the All-Star break, but they squandered their chances and now have nothing to play for due in large part to Shelton's bullpen mismanagement. Add it to the already lengthy list of reasons Pittsburgh should show him the door as soon as the season is over.

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