The Pittsburgh Pirates have a bullpen problem, and they made that painfully clear again in their 8-7 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on July 31.
Pittsburgh dropped its 20th save of the season after coughing up a 7-5 lead and allowing three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. With the Aug. 3 trade deadline approaching, the Pirates are expected to look for relief help, and one name that fits the need is Los Angeles Angels right-hander Ryan Zeferjahn.
Zeferjahn checks a lot of boxes for a Pirates team trying to patch together late innings. He has been effective against both righties and lefties, posting a .147/.296/.242 line against right-handed hitters for an OPS of .538 and a .175/.337/.350 line against lefties for an OPS of .687.
His underlying numbers back up the production. Zeferjahn works with a five-pitch mix, leaning most heavily on his sweeper and four-seam fastball while also mixing in a sinker, slider and the occasional curveball.
The sweeper has been his best weapon, with a run value of +7, tied for the fourth-best in MLB this season. Hitters have had a hard time squaring it up, with a 34.9% strikeout rate and a 33.3% hard-hit rate against the pitch.
The season has not been linear for Zeferjahn. He opened with a 5.86 ERA over his first 23 games, but over his last 21 games and 22.1 innings, he has been far sharper, allowing just three runs while striking out 39 batters for a 1.21 ERA.
There are still questions. His walk rate sits at 14.4%, which ranks in the bottom 3% of MLB pitchers this season, though his strikeout ability helps cover for that issue. The bigger question for Pittsburgh is whether he can keep this level going the rest of the way.
Even so, Zeferjahn would come with more than just short-term help. He has one more year of pre-arbitration, then three years of arbitration before reaching free agency after the 2030 season.
The Angels are also positioned to sell at the deadline as they move into a serious rebuild, which makes them a realistic trade partner. For a Pirates club that needs to act aggressively, Zeferjahn would be a strong place to start.
In Other News...
Pirates May Have Found A Trade Path For Bullpen Help
The Pirates search for bullpen help may be getting a little clearer as the trade market starts to take shape, and the Texas Rangers are suddenly part of the conversation. After a rough stretch, Texas has let other clubs know that no player is entirely off-limits, which opens the door for teams like Pittsburgh to at least explore ways to add depth without paying premium prices.
For the Pirates, the appeal appears to be in the Rangers relief mix rather than the headline names. Peyton Gray and Tyler Alexander have both put together solid seasons, and they fit the kind of lower-cost path Pittsburgh would likely have to pursue. The bigger-ticket Rangers pieces remain a different matter, with players such as Jacob deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi not expected to be available to a club like Pittsburgh. [Read more 🡒]
Pirates May Have Found A Bullpen Arm Worth Watching Closely
The Pirates got a first look at Doval almost immediately after acquiring him from the Yankees on Saturday, and the right-hander was in uniform and on the mound by Sunday. Pittsburgh brought him into the mix against the Reds, giving the bullpen a fresh arm to evaluate in a game that offered an early glimpse of how he might fit into Don Kellys relief plans.
Dovals first outing with his new club was a mixed one, as he gave up a solo homer but otherwise worked through the inning with authority. Kelly and Doval both addressed what the appearance meant for his role moving forward, and for a Pirates bullpen that is always looking for someone who can give it a little more late-game stability. [Read more 🡒]
Pirates Bullpen Pressure Just Grew For Ben Cherington At Deadline
The bullpen market moved a little faster than the Pirates did, and that matters in Pittsburgh with the deadline in the rearview. Chicago landed right-handed reliever Huascar Brazobn from the Mets, a name the Pirates had shown interest in, underscoring how quickly relief help can come off the board when multiple clubs are chasing the same arms. For a team still trying to sort out the late innings, it was another reminder that patience alone is not going to fix the problem.
Ben Cherington is still searching for answers, and the pressure around the Pirates bullpen has only grown as the club continues to look at other possibilities. Luke Weaver and Brooks Raley remain among the targets being explored, but the broader issue is familiar by now: Pittsburgh needs more certainty in relief, and every missed opportunity only sharpens the focus on the general manager to deliver something that actually steadies the group. [Read more 🡒]