Pirates can't be forgiven for completely botching David Bednar trade with Yankees

Atlanta Braves v Pittsburgh Pirates | Justin Berl/GettyImagesThe Pittsburgh Pirates just made arguably one of the worst possible deals they could have made, trading right-handed closer David Bednar to the New York Yankees for a package of three prospects. The Pirates, and more specifically Ben Cherington, utterly botched what could have been the Pirates’ best opportunity to improve their offense.

Bednar has rebounded from a rough 2024 season and a poor start to 2025 to have what has arguably been his best season yet. In 38 innings, Bednar has a 2.37 ERA, 1.96 FIP, and 1.11 WHIP. He is striking out batters at a career-best 33.1% rate with a career-low 6.1% walk rate. He had his best stretch…