Coming back as the closer: Since being traded by Padres, David Bednar thriving with Pirates

Returning to San Diego’s Petco Park this weekend is special for David Bednar, as the Padres drafted him in the 35th round out of Lafayette in 2016 and developed him into a major-leaguer.

“I came up all the way with the Padres,” Bednar said. “It’s always cool to see all the coaches and staff that helped you get to that point, so I’ll definitely always have a special appreciation for that. It’s a beautiful ballpark, first off — probably the second-most beautiful city, second-most beautiful ballpark, behind Pittsburgh. It’s definitely cool to go back. Some of my buddies are still there. Some got traded away, too.”

What made it even more special for Bednar is coming back as the closer for the Pittsburgh Pirates, a role he has had to earn but one for which the Mars graduate seems perfectly suited.

Since being part of the return package in the Joe Musgrove trade in January 2021, Bednar has become something of a hometown hero who embraces everything Pittsburgh and makes a grand entrance by adopting a Steelers anthem that has caused Pirates broadcasters to nickname him The Renegade.

Then Bednar shuts the front door.

Shut. It. Down. ????

Custom Road Gray Cleats for @Pirates Relief Pitcher, the hometown kid, the Renegade, @david_bednar ! Customized to color match the road gray uniforms, his number and a black to gold gradient#LetsGoBucs #RaiseIt #BucsBooth pic.twitter.com/GweGJsZ0yA

— Matt Speck (@the_mattspeck24) May 27, 2022

“It’s great,” Bednar said. “Obviously, I wasn’t tearing it up there (in San Diego) by any means. I was still trying to get my feet wet. When you go back, you always want to go out and compete and show that you’re doing it.”

Bednar leads the Pirates with eight saves in as many chances and ranks among the major-league leaders with a 7.5 strikeout-to-walk ratio, 0.78 ERA, 0.696 WHIP, a .150 batting average against and a 35.7% strikeout rate that ranks in the 97th percentile.

What has impressed Pirates manager Derek Shelton is the 6-foot-1, 250-pound Bednar’s development of a devastating combination by pairing a four-seam fastball that sits at 96.5 mph with an unhittable curveball as putaway pitches to go with his splitter.

“He’s has transitioned himself into a back-end leverage guy,” Shelton said. “I think the big thing is the execution of the curveball and the execution of the split. People get enamored because he’s a big, strong guy and you see 96 to 98 (mph velocity), but the ability to throw the breaking ball … ”

David Bednar, Ridiculous 76mph Curveball. ???? pic.twitter.com/vkMqR9Jar5

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 1, 2021

Shelton pointed to Bednar’s conviction on the pitch sequencing against Colorado Rockies left fielder Sam Hilliard in the ninth inning of Monday’s 2-1 win at PNC Park, when Bednar threw a curveball for a ball on a 2-2 count only to throw it again on a full count for a strikeout.

“That’s the evolution of him as a pitcher,” Shelton said, “and being able to control it.”

Bednar has thrived by focusing on what he can control, from making the Opening Day roster out of spring training in 2021 to working his way into a high-leverage role. He started the season sharing ninth-inning duties with Chris Stratton and has pitched multiple innings in six of his 19 appearances, but Bednar has finished his past 10 games.

After growing up going to PNC Park and watching Pirates closers from Matt Capps and Jose Mesa to Joel Hanrahan, Mark Melancon and Jason Grilli, Bednar is loving his turn as the shutdown pitcher.

“It’s so cool. It really is surreal,” Bednar said. “To be in that kind of spot where I came up watching those guys throwing is really cool, kind of just a pinch-me.”

PLAY RENEGADE!!!!@david_bednar @Pirates #Dawgsfamily #chills #oneofus#areyounext pic.twitter.com/eu6OJ8kaKD

— PITTSBURGH DIAMOND DAWGS BASEBALL (@PghDawgs) May 15, 2022

Nothing gets Bednar smiling as much as talking about his entrance to “Renegade” by Styx and the Pirates-produced video to go with it, perhaps the surest sign that he has become the closer. Produced by Sterling McLean and Madison Mueller, the entrance video shows close-up clips of Bednar followed by a montage of his strikeouts synced to the music.

“They absolutely crushed it,” Bednar said. “I was watching it and was like, ‘Whoa, that’s even way more bad-ass than I could ever expect.’ It’s really cool. To have it paired with ‘Renegade’ is tough to beat. It gets the Yinzers going. That’s the best thing.”