Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar threw a clean ninth inning to pick up his 24th save in a 4-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds in the first game of their doubleheader. Bednar allowed just one hit while striking out a pair in his inning of work. The righty needed this outing, as he had allowed five runs in his last three appearances. Even with the struggles, Bednar has pitched to a 2.03 ERA and 1.09 WHIP with 59 punchouts in 48 IP. He is one of the league's elite closers and should continue to be a force in fantasy, even if he is on a bad team.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar blew his third save of the season in Tuesday's 8-6 loss to the Braves. Bednar came in to pitch the top of the ninth up by one. He got the first out on a flyout, allowed a walk and a double, got the second out on a fielder's choice in which runners reached first and third, allowed a game-tying single, allowed a go-ahead, two-run double, issued an intentional walk, and finally ended things with a strikeout. While his last two outings have not been clean, Bednar has been one of fantasy's more reliable closers this season and has 23 saves with a 2.08 ERA and a 10.76 K/9 rate. Fantasy managers should continue to have faith in him as a higher-end fantasy option.

It wasn't clean, but Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar was able to pick up his 23rd save of the season in Monday's 7-6 win over the Braves. Bednar entered the game to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by two. He allowed a leadoff double, got the first out on a flyout in which the runner advanced to third, got the second out on an RBI groundout, and got the final out on another groundout. The 28-year-old has been a solid fantasy option all season long, converting all but two of his save opportunities with a 1.54 ERA and a 10.80 K/9 rate. The Pirates have ended up being one of baseball's more underachieving teams, but he is still a higher-end fantasy closer in all leagues.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar picked up his 22nd save of the season in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Tigers. The 28-year-old came in to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by three and delivered a 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts. While the Pirates have fallen considerably in performance, Bednar should still remain a higher-end fantasy option given his role security and strong performance. He has now converted all but one save opportunity with a 1.24 ERA and an 11.54 K/9 rate.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar logged his 20th save of the season Wednesday against the San Diego Padres. Bednar was called upon to defend a two-run lead in the ninth inning. He threw 37 pitches which included 22 strikes, to earn the save. Things got interesting with the 28-year-old loading the bases and then intentionally walking pinch hitter Juan Soto to cut the lead to 3-2. He settled down and retired the next two batters to end the game. Besides having 20 saves, the closer has posted a 3-1 record with a 1.35 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 40 innings pitched.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are telling teams that they would listen on All-Star closer David Bednar, but the understanding is that he'd be difficult to move since he isn't a free agent until 2027. The Pittsburgh native currently has a career-best 1.15 ERA (1.98 FIP), 0.95 WHIP, a career-high-tying 19 saves, nine walks and 47 strikeouts in 39 relief innings for the Pirates in his fifth MLB season. A move to a contender could push Bednar out of a regular closing role, but he'd still be valuable for his ratios in a setup role in deeper fantasy leagues. If he does leave Pittsburgh by the Aug. 1 trade deadline, Dauri Moreta and Colin Holderman would be the favorites for save chances for the Bucs the rest of the season.

Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher David Bednar worked a scoreless ninth inning on Wednesday against the Cleveland Guardians to pick up his 18th save of the season in a 7-5 win. This game looked to be out of reach for the Pirates before a five-run seventh inning gave them the lead. Bednar was called upon to protect the two-run lead and retired Will Brennan with a strikeout before Steven Kwan lined out and Amed Rosario flew out to end the ball game. The 28-year-old closer has been sensational this season for Pittsburgh, posting a microscopic 1.18 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, and 46:7 K/BB ratio across 38 innings of relief. He's 18-for-19 on save opportunities as well.

Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher David Bednar was asked to hold a two-run lead versus the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday. He allowed a leadoff walk to Christian Walker, but settled down after that. Bednar was able to get a pop out before striking out the next two batters to earn his 17th save of the season. He heads into the break with a tremendous 1.31 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and a 42/3 K/BB. It'll be interesting to see if the Pirates decide to make Bednar available at the trade deadline. A move to a contender could increase his fantasy value, but we'll wait and see what the Pirates decide to do.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar converted his 16th save of the season on Thursday, shutting down the Padres in a 5-4 victory. Bednar came into the game with two outs in the eighth and a runner at second, but escaped with a strikeout. He struck out another two in the ninth to finish off the game. The big righty has been tremendous this year, pitching to a 1.44 ERA and 0.89 WHIP with 37 strikeouts in 31 IP. He is also 16-for-17 in save opportunities. It will be interesting to see what the Pirates decide to do at the trade deadline, as they are on the bubble right now and could end up as sellers, in which case Bednar would be a top-tier relief option for a contender.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar notched his 14th save of the season Sunday in a 2-1 win over the New York Mets. Bednar allowed a one-out double, but nothing more. His numbers continue to shine, as he now has a 1.78 ERA and 0.87 WHIP with 31 strikeouts in 25 IP. He is now 14-for-15 in save opportunities and should continue to get a decent share of saves on a surprisingly good Pittsburgh squad, making him one of the better closing options in fantasy.

Pittsburgh Pirates reliever David Bednar allowed one hit over a scoreless inning to earn the save in Saturday's 4-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. He entered the ninth inning to protect a one-run lead. The 28-year-old worked around a one-out single by Jordan Walker to secure the Pirates' victory. He has now recorded a save in back-to-back games. Bednar is 12-for-13 in save opportunities with a 1.17 ERA, 0.74 WHIP, and a 29:1 K: BB across 23 innings. Bednar is one of the top closers in baseball in 2023, and fantasy managers should continue to roll with him in all leagues.

Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander David Bednar finally picked up his 10th save of the season on Tuesday when his club beat the San Francisco Giants 2-1. He managed two punchouts over his one inning of work without allowing a baserunner. The save was his first since April 29, but Bednar's not to blame. The 28-year-old's been lights out this year, posting a 1.29 ERA, 0.71 WHIP, and 35.4% strikeout rate. Hopefully, the Pirates can turn things around for Bednar's sake, but he's still a top reliever in all of baseball either way.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar recorded his ninth save of the season in Saturday's 6-3 win over the Washington Nationals in game one of the doubleheader. Bednar has a four-way tie for the most saves in the MLB with Josh Hader, Jordan Romano, and Emmanuel Clase. He is one of the most electric closers in the game and has one of the lowest ERA amongst qualifying relievers. He exhibits a 0.69 ERA, 0.69 WHIP, with 17 strikeouts across 13 innings. He's made 13 appearances with a 31.9% strikeout rate and a 2.1% walk rate. The 28-year-old has allowed just one run this season and is on pace for one of the most dominant seasons as a closer.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar blew his first save of the season but earned a win in Tuesday's 7-4 game against the Astros. Bednar entered the game to pitch the top of the ninth inning up 4-2. He got the first out on a flyout, had a runner reach first on an error, allowed another single and a two-RBI double to tie the game, got the second out on a groundout, intentionally walked Yordan Alvarez, and finally struck out Jose Abreu to end the half inning. The Pirates would walk it off in the bottom half, making Bednar the winning pitcher of record. Despite this blip, the 28-year-old has pitched well so far, converting four of five save opportunities with a 1.80 ERA and a 14.40 K/9 rate. He should continue to be a higher-end fantasy option despite closing on a subpar team.

Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander David Bednar allowed one hit while striking out two over a scoreless inning to earn the save in Sunday's 1-0 win over the Chicago White Sox. He entered the game in the ninth inning to protect a one-run lead. The 28-year-old completed the shutout by striking out Oscar Colas to earn his fourth save. He owns a 0.75 WHIP and a 7:0 K: BB ratio across four scoreless innings in 2023. The Pirates have surpassed expectations and holds a 6-3 win/loss record in 2023. Fantasy managers should continue to roll with Bednar, as he is one of the top closers in baseball so far this season.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar picked up his second save of the season in Monday's 7-6 win over the Red Sox. Bednar entered to pitch the bottom of the ninth with a one-run lead. He got the first out on a groundout, allowed a single, and then struck out the final two hitters to end the game. The 28-year-old has looked sharp in his first two outings, converting both save opportunities with two hits, no walks, and four strikeouts. He was a fantasy asset in 2022 despite pitching for the Pirates and flashed strikeout upside with a 32.9% strikeout rate, so fantasy managers should be happy to see him picking up where he left off.

Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton announced that All-Star closer David Bednar (back) will be activated from the 15-day injured list on Thursday, with left-hander Eric Stout (back) going on the 15-day injured list in a corresponding move. Bednar made three minor league rehab outings with Triple-A Indianapolis before he was activated, and he'll have time to contribute a handful of save chances before the year is up. Wil Crowe had been serving as Pittsburgh's closer with Bednar on the shelf, but expect the 27-year-old Bednar to return to his role in the ninth inning now that he's back. Before his injury, Bednar had a 2.70 ERA (2.49 FIP), a 1.07 WHIP, a career-high 17 saves and 63 strikeouts in 46 2/3 innings. Scoop him up if he's available on the waiver wire and you're still chasing saves.

Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher David Bednar (back) tossed another scoreless inning in a minor league rehab outing with Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday, giving up one hit while walking none and striking out two. Barring any setbacks, he should be able to come off the injured list to rejoin the Pirates bullpen at some point this week. Before his injury, the 27-year-old All-Star was having a fine year with a 2.70 ERA (2.49 FIP), a 1.07 WHIP, career-high 17 saves and 63 strikeouts in 46 2/3 innings pitched. Wil Crowe has been serving as the team's closer with Bednar sidelined, but it's possible that Bednar will see some ninth-inning save chances to close out the 2022 regular season.

Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar (back) is set to make a rehab appearance for Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday, according to general manager Ben Cherington. If Bednar doesn't experience any setbacks in that outing then he should return to the Pirates this week. The 27-year-old reliever posted a 2.70 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and 63:14 K/BB ratio over 46 2/3 innings to go along with 17 saves before heading to the IL in early August with lower back inflammation.