Pirates Veteran Receives National Recognition For Huge Bounce Back

It’s a good week to be a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Don Kelly, the interim manager who has led the team on a six-game winning streak, has earned praise from baseball insiders for his work. Mitch Keller, a veteran starting pitcher who has won consecutive starts, became the all-time leader in strikeouts at PNC Park. Tommy Pham, who recently made a change to his contact prescription, suddenly can see and his knocking the cover off the ball.

Can it get any better?

Yep!

David Bednar, who entered this season coming off the worst of his career, has completely turned things around and was named National League Reliever of the Month for June.

Bednar, 30, didn’t allow a single earned run across 10 innings pitched in 10 total appearances, collecting five total saves while holding opponents to a .121/.194/.121 slash line. The Pirates’ entire bullpen was nails across the month, finishing with a 2.48 ERA, which was the second-best in baseball behind only the Chicago Cubs. It’s the organization’s lowest bullpen ERA for a month since July 2017, according to broadcaster Joe Block.

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