Pirates All 40: What Does Peter Strzelecki Bring to the Table?

This is one in a series of stories breaking down members of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 40-man roster.

The Pirates’ third acquisition of the 2024-2025 offseason, general manager Ben Cherington swung a deal with the Cleveland Guardians during the week before Thanksgiving, picking up right-handed reliever Peter Strzelecki in exchange for cash considerations.

Strzelecki made his big league debut in 2022, a lightning quick rise when considering his back story. The Milwaukee Brewers signed him as an undrafted free agent following the 2018 MLB Entry Draft, and he made his way to Triple-A by the end of his third professional season. Given that minor leaguers missed the entire 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, that’s no small feat… and the attrition rate for professional players trying to make it through the minors is sky high, much less for an undrafted free agent.

Strzelecki pitched to a 2.83 ERA in 30 appearances during his first big league season with the Brewers, striking out 40 batters in 35 innings. He broke camp with Milwaukee in 2023, spending most of the first three months with the big league club despite struggling to a 4.54 ERA that saw him demoted to Triple-A and then traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks, with whom he appeared in just one big league game before getting designated for assignment during the following spring training.

The Guardians scooped Strzelecki up and he put together another strong season in limited playing time, posting a 2.31 ERA in 11.2 innings pitched. Despite the excellent statistics, Strzelecki’s underlying numbers suggest regression to the mean: per Statcast, his ground ball rate, barrel rate, strikeout, whiff and chase rates all sit within the bottom third of Major League Baseball amongst qualifying pitchers.

It might not be pretty, but he’s managed to get the job done for most of his career. Will the Pirates give him an extended look?