Three things the Pittsburgh Pirates can do to improve the bullpen

Pirates Recall Carmen Mlodzinski

Carmen Mlodzinski was drafted in the first round of the 2020 draft as the Bucs' competitive balance pick. Although Mlodzinski started of his career as a starting pitcher, he transitioned to the bullpen last season. Despite the change in role, Mlodzinski took it well and had an outstanding second half for the Bucs.

All told, Mlodzinski pitched 36 innings in the Majors for the Pirates, working to a 2.25 ERA, 4.03 FIP, and 1.28 WHIP. While Mlodzinski did not have an overly impressive strikeout rate (22.4) or walk rate (11.8%), he was great at limiting home runs with an 0.75 HR/9. Plus he had just a 4% barrel rate, as well as an improved 24.8% K% after the All-Star break.

Like Borucki, by the end of the year, Mlodzinski was a go-to high-leverage arm for the Pirates. He allowed just two earned runs in the month of September. After allowing two earned runs on June 22nd, his fourth Big League game, he settled things down, only allowing six more with 31 K's, one home run allowed, and 17 walks through his final 31.1 innings. According to Baseball Reference, Mlodzinski's opponents had a .225/.297/.288 triple-slash in late and close games against him.

Mlodzinski, projected to play an important role to start 2024, was shut down in the middle of Spring Training with an injury. But he's since returned to action and has pitched nine innings between Bradenton and Indianapolis. 

The Pirates were understandably cautious with Mlodzinski to open the year and optioning him gave him the chance to get stretched out. You don't want another David Bednar situation happening in the Major Leagues. But now that Mlodzinski is stretched out, it's time to see him back in the bigs. Along with relieving some pressure from Colin Holderman, he can also take some stress off of Aroldis Chapman too, who, like mentioned earlier, definitely needs a much-required breather.

Figure out what the Pirates have in Luis Ortiz

Luis Ortiz has not done great to start the year. But to his defense, the Pirates don't seem to know what to do with him. Do they want him to be a late-inning arm? He has pitched in the 8th inning or later four times. Or do they want him to be a multi-inning arm they can use whenever? He's also pitched in the sixth inning or earlier on four other occasions.

Just like Ortiz's usage, he's been all over the place, performance-wise. Ortiz has tossed 14 innings, allowing six earned runs, walking ten, and striking out a dozen. Ortiz has induced a ton of ground balls and has a 52.6% GB%. He also has limited quality contact, holding opponents to a meager 2.6% barrel rate. While Ortiz has lost a touch of velocity, his overall stuff+ is up to 106, compared to 99 last year.

There's definitely more movement to his offerings. His sinker has gained about three inches of vertical drop and an inch of horizontal movement. Ortiz has also sacrificed about two inches of drop on his slider to add two inches of break. But his other offerings, like his four-seamer and change-up, look about the same.

Put Ortiz in a role and stick him there. Stop making him bounce around from role to role. If he's a multi-inning/long relief arm, then leave him in that role. If he's a late-inning arm, then let him pitch more in late innings. It could totally change how he approaches batters. Asking him to be good enough to give a few innings and keep the team in the game is totally different to asking him to hold a 1-3 run lead (or not let the opponent widen a close lead) in the 7th inning or later. If he can get comfortable in one role, he might pitch a lot better.