Perrotto: Pirates Might Want to Think Twice About Trading David Bednar
I like to think I’m adaptable to the times for a man my age.
I post regularly on social media. I know what a drip is, and it doesn’t always mean a leaky faucet. I even know what a lot of the advanced baseball metrics mean.
Not bad for a 61-year-old man. It helps, of course, that I have the maturity of a 12-year-old.
The point I’m making is I’m not an angry old man yelling at people to get off my lawn. Ironically, I cared more about the condition of my lawn when I was younger.
However, one old-school thing I will always cling to is humanity. People matter. Interpersonal relationships are still meaningful.
I think about the human element often as the MLB trade deadline approaches. Many people’s lives have already been uprooted in recent days and more will be affected in the hours between now and Thursday’s 6 p.m. deadline.
Players understand the business of baseball and appreciate being compensated well in a profession when trades – essentially job transfers – can happen in an instant.
The Pittsburgh Pirates could trade a lot of players in the next two days. Right-hander Mitch Keller and closer David Bednar highlight a list that includes left-handers Bailey Falter and Andrew Heaney, lefty reliever Caleb Ferguson, right-handed reliever Dennis Santana, third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa, left fielder Tommy Pham, center fielder Oneil Cruz, and right fielder Bryan Reynolds.
General Manager Ben Cherington shouldn’t stand pat. Not with the Pirates in last place in the National League Central, and Cherington’s job status is uncertain.
The Pirates desperately need to add quality hitters to a lineup that is last in the major leagues in runs scored. Of course, being the low-budget Pirates, they want players with low salaries who are under contractual control for many years.
The best chance to acquire those hitters is by trading pitching, notably Keller, Bednar, and Santana. Multiple contending teams want each member of that trio, and Cherington might be able to conduct a bidding war.
Or maybe not. Cherington usually hasn’t shone at the trade deadline since taking the job before the 2020 season.
I could give Cherington plenty of free advice on how to handle these next two days. Of course, so could everyone else. Of course, Cherington shouldn’t care what you and I think.
However, the one thing I hope Cherington doesn’t do is trade Bednar.
Please let me confess that I have a soft spot in my heart for Western Pennsylvanians who play for the Pirates. They grew up wanting to play for their hometown team and went on to achieve their dreams. That’s special.
There are also practical reasons why I don’t think Bednar should go, the biggest being that he has worked his way back to being an elite closer. He has converted all 17 save opportunities – despite being demoted to Triple-A Indianapolis for 2.5 weeks in early April following a rocky start to the season – and has a 2.37 ERA in 42 games.
Then there is the human aspect.
The Mars Area High School graduate is a huge fan favorite as they relate to a player selected to two All-Star Games despite being a 35th-round draft pick. Bednar is very active in community work, and nobody enjoys being a Yinzer more.
Bednar will likely have a salary in the $8-9 million range next season, as he will be eligible for salary arbitration for the last time during the offseason. The numbers crowd will say paying Bednar that much money would be a “market inefficiency” because relievers are “fungible.”
They are probably right.
Baseball is about more than numbers. It’s not one long algebra problem. Humanity has its place in the game.
If you don’t believe it, you might want to get off my lawn.