David Bednar

David Bednar

28-Year-Old PitcherRP
Pittsburgh Pirates
2023 Fantasy Outlook
When healthy, Bednar is one of the most secure closers in the league, as he has no competition for the role in Pittsburgh. However, just how long will he be pitching for the Pirates? With Bednar's arbitration window approaching, beginning in 2024, it will be interesting to see whether the rebuilding and typically cost-conscious team elects to trade the 28-year-old, or builds their bullpen around him. Bednar got off to a phenomenal start in 2022 and was one of the most dominant relievers in the league for two-and-half months. He mixed his 3 pitches successfully, with each producing a 30% whiff rate or higher. Bednar complements his 96.5 mph fastball with an excellent curve and a split-finger change that he threw primarily against left-handed hitters. Unfortunately, Bednar dealt with back issues for much of 2022, which eventually required an IL stint for nearly two months. As such, there's some risk in drafting him, especially since closing is no guarantee if he gets traded. Read Past Outlooks
RANKSFrom Preseason
#128
ADP
$Signed a one-year contract with the Pirates in March of 2023.
Notches save Thursday
PPittsburgh Pirates
March 30, 2023
Bednar picked up the save Thursday against Cincinnati. He allowed one hit while striking out two over one scoreless inning.
ANALYSIS
With the Pirates clinging to a one-run lead, Bednar got the call to nail things down. He worked around a Jonathan India double, throwing 14 of his 18 pitches for strikes to earn his first save of the season and the 23rd of his young career. Bednar's skills are excellent and his job security is high, though the threat of a trade later in the season looms.
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Pitching Stats
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2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2023 MLB Game Log
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2022 MLB Game Log
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2021 MLB Game Log
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2020 MLB Game Log
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2019 MLB Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
18
Last 10 Games
18
Last 5 Games
18
How many pitches does David Bednar generally throw?
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
 
1-10
 
11-20
 
21-30
 
31-40
 
41-50
 
51-60
 
61-70
 
71-80
 
81-90
 
91-100
 
101-110
 
111-120
 
121+
What part of the game does David Bednar generally pitch?
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
 
 
 
1st
 
 
 
2nd
 
 
 
3rd
 
 
 
4th
 
 
 
5th
 
 
 
6th
 
 
 
7th
 
 
 
8th
 
 
 
9th
 
Extra
% Games Reaching Innings Threshold
% Games By Number of Innings Pitched
Left/Right Pitching Splits
Since 2021
 
 
-17%
BAA vs LHP
2023
 
 
-100%
BAA vs LHP
2022
 
 
-21%
BAA vs LHP
2021
 
 
-6%
BAA vs LHP
BAA Batters K BB H 2B 3B HR
Since 2021vs Left .180 190 61 17 31 7 0 3
Since 2021vs Right .216 261 87 18 52 14 3 6
2023vs Left .000 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
2023vs Right .500 2 0 0 1 1 0 0
2022vs Left .188 89 30 9 15 4 0 1
2022vs Right .239 121 39 7 27 7 0 3
2021vs Left .178 99 29 8 16 3 0 2
2021vs Right .190 138 48 11 24 6 3 3
More Splits View More Split Stats
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2021
 
 
-30%
ERA at Home
2023
No Stats
2022
 
 
-22%
ERA at Home
2021
 
 
-40%
ERA at Home
ERA WHIP IP W L SV K/9 BB/9 HR/9
Since 2021Home 1.97 0.98 59.1 3 2 11 11.8 2.9 0.6
Since 2021Away 2.83 1.11 54.0 3 3 12 11.7 2.7 0.8
2023Home 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2023Away 0.00 1.00 1.0 0 0 1 18.0 0.0 0.0
2022Home 2.30 0.99 27.1 2 2 9 11.2 2.6 1.0
2022Away 2.96 1.27 24.1 1 2 10 12.9 3.0 0.4
2021Home 1.69 0.97 32.0 1 0 2 12.4 3.1 0.3
2021Away 2.83 0.98 28.2 2 1 1 10.4 2.5 1.3
More Splits View More Split Stats
Stat Review
How does David Bednar compare to other relievers?
This section compares his stats with all relief pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 30 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.

* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 30 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.
  • K/BB
    Strikeout to walk ratio.
  • K/9
    Average strikeouts per nine innings.
  • BB/9
    Average walks per nine innings.
  • HR/9
    Average home runs allowed per nine innings.
  • Fastball
    Average fastball velocity.
  • ERA
    Earned run average. The average earned runs allowed per nine innings.
  • WHIP
    Walks plus hits per inning pitched.
  • BABIP
    Batting average on balls in play. Measures how many balls in play against a pitcher go for hits.
  • GB/FB
    Groundball to flyball ratio. The higher the number, the more likely a pitcher is to induce groundballs.
  • Left On Base
    The percentage of base runners that a pitcher strands on base over the course of a season.
  • Exit Velocity
    The speed of the baseball as it comes off the bat, immediately after a batter makes contact.
  • Barrels/BBE
    The percentage of batted ball events resulting in a Barrel. A Barrel is a batted ball with similar exit velocity and launch angle to past ones that led to a minimum .500 batting average and 1.500 slugging percentage.
  • Spin Rate
    Spin Rate is the rate of spin on a baseball after it is released. It is measured in revolutions per minute (rpm).
  • Balls Hit 95+ MPH
    The percentage of batted balls hit that met or exceeded the 95 MPH threshold.
  • Swinging Strike
    The percentage of pitches that result in a swing and a miss.
K/BB
0.00
 
K/9
18.0
 
BB/9
0.0
 
HR/9
0.0
 
Fastball
96.4 mph
 
ERA
0.00
 
WHIP
1.00
 
BABIP
.549
 
GB/FB
0.00
 
Left On Base
100.0%
 
Swinging Strike
22.2%
 
Prospect Rankings History
Advanced Pitching Stats
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Defensive Stats
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Stats Vs Today's Lineup
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring David Bednar See More
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15 days ago
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17 days ago
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23 days ago
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26 days ago
Erik Halterman breaks down the betting odds for the 2023 World Baseball Classic and offers his best bets for the pool and knockout stages.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
2022
2021
Bednar's rookie season was stellar overall, but he really flashed his upside after the All-Star break, posting a miniscule 1.05 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 35:7 K:BB over 25.2 innings. After allowing five home runs over the first two-and-a-half months of the season, the Pittsburgh native did not permit another long ball after June 16, a span of 35.2 innings. Armed with a 97-mph fastball, devastating curve and changeup - all of which held batters to a .204 average or below - Bednar impressed with a 16.9% SwStr% (T6th among qualified relievers), 32.5% strikeout rate (94th percentile) and 24.5% K-BB% (16th among qualified relievers). The 27-year-old finished the season with a 2.23 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, three wins, three saves and 13 holds over 61 appearances. Bednar should receive a good share of the Pirates' save opportunities, but will likely be deployed in the highest-leverage moments instead of closing exclusively.
It was easy to overlook Bednar in the Pirates' return for Joe Musgrove; he was a 35th-round pick in 2016 and struggled to a 6.75 ERA in his first 17.1 major-league innings with San Diego from 2019-20. The 26-year-old showed up to camp with his new team in 2021 and began opening eyes in the Grapefruit League, ultimately finishing with 18 strikeouts and only one walk allowed in 8.2 scoreless spring innings. The Pirates informed Bednar after his March 29 outing that he'd made the team (even with options remaining), and with his velocity ticking up in exhibition play all the way to 99 mph, it's now rather easy to draw the line to Bednar eventually being in the ninth inning for Pittsburgh. The Pirates' bullpen is completely unsettled, and if Bednar's spring dominance carries over into the regular season, he could separate from the pack quickly.
More Fantasy News
Impressing for USA
PPittsburgh Pirates
March 20, 2023
Bednar has allowed one run across three innings while striking out five and walking none while pitching for the USA in the World Baseball Classic.
ANALYSIS
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Records 19th save
PPittsburgh Pirates
October 2, 2022
Bednar picked up the save with a scoreless inning in Sunday's 7-5 victory over the Cardinals. He allowed one hit and one walk with one strikeout.
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Earns 18th save
PPittsburgh Pirates
September 27, 2022
Bednar picked up the save Tuesday against the Reds, striking out two in a perfect ninth inning of a 4-1 victory.
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Activated by Pirates
PPittsburgh Pirates
September 22, 2022
Bednar (back) was reinstated from the 15-day injured list Thursday, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.
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Final rehab outing set
PPittsburgh Pirates
Back
September 18, 2022
Bednar (back) will continue his rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday in what is likely to be his final outing before being activated from the 15-day injured list, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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