2025 Stats
W-L
4-5
ERA
2.18
WHIP
0.87
K
60
SV
16
2026 Projections
2026 Fantasy Outlook
Santana doesn't fit the typical closer profile - he struck out just 22.2 percent of the batters he faced last season - but the 29-year-old posted a career-best 2.18 ERA (18th) and 0.87 WHIP (T-5th) that were near the top of the leaderboard for relief pitchers. The Dominican native relied heavily on his slider, tossing it a career-high 46.4 percent of the time with great success (.159 BAA, .286 SLG). He also produced a 43.6 percent O-Swing on the pitch and finished 2025 with a 96th percentile chase rate; signs that more strikeouts are possible if his slider usage persists. When the Pirates traded David Bednar at last year's deadline, Santana was summoned for 10 of the team's final 12 saves (83.3 percent team save share). Overall, he secured 16 saves in 19 chances to increase his odds of opening 2026 as the Pirates' closer. However, Santana's 4.13 career ERA and 3.56 xERA last year paint a cloudy outlook for the right-hander. He's a risky bet to lead Pittsburgh in saves in 2026. Read Past Outlooks
Signed a one-year, $1.4 million contract with the Pirates in February of 2025.
Earns 16th save
Santana earned the save in Saturday's 3-1 win over Atlanta, allowing one hit and no walks with two strikeouts in a scoreless ninth inning.
Analysis
Santana was called upon to protect a two-run lead in the ninth and did so on 19 pitches. The 29-year-old has bounced back from a blown save Wednesday with back-to-back scoreless outings and has now held opponents off the board in 10 of his past 11 appearances. For the season, he's 16-for-19 in save chances with a 2.18 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 60:17 K:BB across 70.1 innings.
Santana was called upon to protect a two-run lead in the ninth and did so on 19 pitches. The 29-year-old has bounced back from a blown save Wednesday with back-to-back scoreless outings and has now held opponents off the board in 10 of his past 11 appearances. For the season, he's 16-for-19 in save chances with a 2.18 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 60:17 K:BB across 70.1 innings.
Pitching Stats
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2025 MLB Game Log
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
Minor League Game Log
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Pitching Appearances Breakdown
Average Pitch Count
14
Last 10 Games
14
Last 5 Games
16
How many pitches does Dennis Santana 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+
What part of the game does Dennis Santana generally pitch?
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 2023
-30%
BAA vs LHP
2025
-30%
BAA vs LHP
| BAA | K | BB | H | HR | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2023vs Left | .160 | 57 | 25 | 31 | 3 | |||
| Since 2023vs Right | .227 | 84 | 20 | 80 | 8 | |||
| 2025vs Left | .143 | 23 | 11 | 14 | 1 | |||
| 2025vs Right | .203 | 37 | 6 | 30 | 4 | |||
| 2024vs Left | .171 | 31 | 12 | 14 | 2 | |||
| 2024vs Right | .243 | 38 | 9 | 43 | 2 | |||
| 2023vs Left | .214 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |||
| 2023vs Right | .259 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 2 | |||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | |||||||
Home/Away Pitching Splits
Since 2023
-17%
ERA on Road
2025
-23%
ERA at Home
| ERA | WHIP | IP | K/9 | BB/9 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Since 2023Home | 3.53 | 1.05 | 81.2 | 7.9 | 2.5 | ||||
| Since 2023Away | 2.92 | 0.99 | 71.0 | 8.7 | 2.8 | ||||
| 2025Home | 1.91 | 0.72 | 37.2 | 8.1 | 1.7 | ||||
| 2025Away | 2.48 | 1.04 | 32.2 | 7.2 | 2.8 | ||||
| 2024Home | 4.14 | 1.23 | 41.1 | 7.6 | 2.8 | ||||
| 2024Away | 3.56 | 0.89 | 30.1 | 10.1 | 2.4 | ||||
| 2023Home | 16.88 | 3.00 | 2.2 | 10.1 | 10.1 | ||||
| 2023Away | 2.25 | 1.13 | 8.0 | 10.1 | 4.5 | ||||
| More Splits→ | View More Split Stats | ||||||||
Stat Review
How does Dennis Santana 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.
* 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
3.53K/9
7.7BB/9
2.2HR/9
0.6Fastball
94.7 mphERA
2.18WHIP
0.87BABIP
.220GB/FB
0.93Left On Base
79.6%Exit Velocity
83.3 mphBarrels/BBE
7.2%Spin Rate
2447 rpmBalls Hit 95+ MPH
25.6%Swinging Strike
13.2%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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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2025
2023
2021
2020
2019
Santana received a NRI from the Yankees last offseason, and while he didn't break camp with New York, he impressed during spring training and was recalled in early April. He spent two months in the Bronx, struggling to a 6.26 ERA and 1.35 WHIP across 27.1 innings before he was DFA'd. The 28-year-old righty was claimed by Pittsburgh a few days later and changed his approach, throwing fewer sinkers (.279 BAA, .395 SLG) in favor of more fastballs (.196 BAA, .268 SLG). Santana was much better with the Pirates, even making 21 consecutive appearances without permitting an earned run. He finished the campaign with career-highs in innings pitched (71.2) and WHIP (1.09), the latter being a notable improvement over his 1.32 mark for his career. Santana should open 2025 as one of Pittsburgh's highest-leverage relievers, which may include save chances if David Bednar does not reclaim the closer role.
More Fantasy News
Blows third save
Santana gave up a run on two hits in 1.1 innings Wednesday to blow his third save of the season in a 4-3 extra-innings win over the Reds. He struck out two without walking a batter.
Analysis
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Notches 15th save
Santana allowed a walk in a scoreless inning Tuesday while earning a save over the Reds. He struck out one batter.
Analysis
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Converts 14th save
Santana earned the save in Saturday's 2-0 win over the Athletics, striking out one in a perfect ninth inning.
Analysis
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Works scoreless inning
Santana threw a scoreless inning while not allowing a baserunner and striking out one Tuesday against the Orioles.
Analysis
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Grabs 13th save
Santana earned the save in Wednesday's 3-0 victory over the Dodgers, striking out two in a perfect ninth inning.
Analysis
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Expected to be traded
Santana and David Bednar are the Pirates players likeliest to be traded ahead of the July 31 deadline, per Danny Demilio of PittsburghBaseballNow.com.
Analysis
Santana bounced around the waiver wire over the previous few years before landing with Pittsburgh last season, and he's become a reliable high-leverage reliever with a 2.02 ERA in 75 outings with the Buccos. The right-hander has been especially effective in 2025 with a 1.50 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 28:6 K:BB across 36 innings while recording five saves and nine holds. Santana will enter his final year of arbitration eligibility in 2026, and it would be logical for the Pirates to sell high while he still has a season-plus left under team control.
Santana bounced around the waiver wire over the previous few years before landing with Pittsburgh last season, and he's become a reliable high-leverage reliever with a 2.02 ERA in 75 outings with the Buccos. The right-hander has been especially effective in 2025 with a 1.50 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 28:6 K:BB across 36 innings while recording five saves and nine holds. Santana will enter his final year of arbitration eligibility in 2026, and it would be logical for the Pirates to sell high while he still has a season-plus left under team control.