When the Pirates traded Joe Musgrove to San Diego, it meant not only a homecoming for David Bednar but could also provide a gateway to the major leagues. So far, the Mars H.S. grad is taking full advantage.
The 26-year old Bednar, who was drafted by the Padres after pitching at Lafayette, was making a steady climb through the system and putting up some intriguing numbers. In fact, they were the kinds of numbers that project as a late-inning reliever, maybe a closer.
In four minor league seasons, from Low-A through Double-A, Bednar kept striking batters out. In 220 innings he racked up 303 strikeouts which earned him a September shot in San Diego.
At first glance, it did not go well. The back of the baseball card shows a 6.55 ERA in 13 appearances. The strikeouts were there – 14 in 11 innings - but also 5 walks and 3 home runs. But further examination shows thet Bednar was actually pretty good.
His first 11 outings were solid (1.93 ERA), but the final 2 skewed the numbers substantially. Bednar allowed a solo home run against the Dodgers and, in his last game, he gave up 5 runs in two-thirds of an inning, 4 of them on a grand slam.
Nonetheless, Bednar showed enough that surely he would get a long look in 2020. Instead, 2020 was 2020 and Bednar bounced back and forth from the Padres alternate site and never gained any traction. But he is getting that chance in Pittsburgh and his manager has noticed.
“He’s impressive. He’s bigger than I thought he was; I mean, he’s a big dude” Derek Shelton says of the 6-1, 245 pound Bednar. “He’s throwing the ball really well and he has been really impressive.”
After another scoreless inning against Minnesota Tuesday, Bednar has now pitched 6 innings in Grapefruit League games. He has allowed by 2 hits, both against the Yankees a week ago. Maybe more importantly, he has walked just one batter, while striking out 10.
Bednar’s most impressive performance came two weeks ago when he struck out the side against Atlanta, including Ender Inciarte and Austin Riley, who are legit big-leaguers.
Shelton thinks Bednar’s success may be because he is keeping it simple. “Yeah, fastball,” Shelton explains, “his ability to spin the fastball and locate the fastball has been really good so far in spring training.”
Whether that translates to regular season success is always a question among unproven players but Bednar is making a strong case to finally make his mark in the majors.