Phillies Interest in Pirates’ David Bednar Has Seen an ‘Uptick’ Amid His Dominant June originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
While there are a few issues with the Philadelphia Phillies this season, none are more prominent than the bullpen issues. The MLB trade deadline is less than a month away, and the Phillies are increasing their interest in relievers on the market.
According to Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Phillies are targeting Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star David Bednar. Amid Bednar’s recent dominance, the Phillies’ interest changed.
“The Phillies’ interest in Bednar has received a notable uptick as of late,” Hiles writes, “Mostly because of the right-hander’s dominant performance.”
Bednar is a righty reliever who could immediately replace Jordan Romano at the back end of the rotation. Fortunately for the Phillies, the Pirates are listening to offers for Bednar and could land the former All-Star by the trade deadline.
After the 2025 season, Bednar has one more year of control. The Phillies, if they landed him, would have more than just the 2025 season. He’s not just a rental, he’d be an investment for the next year and a half.
This season, after a rough 2024, Bednar has a 2.73 ERA and has been great as of late. Since June first, Bednar has a 0.00 ERA in 11 games, and has 17 strikeouts to just four walks.
He struggled a bit out of the gate this season, with a 4.34 ERA through the end of May. But, in the last month, he’s been incredible. That dominance has sparked the Phillies to increase their interest in the righty reliever.
Philadelphia needs more relief pitching help, and Bednar could be that reliever. Less than a month from the MLB trade deadline, the 30-year-old is seeing an uptick in interest from the Phillies.
The former 2023 National League saves leader coming to Philadelphia would be a great addition to the bullpen. He’s been in the Majors across seven seasons and has been a solid closer since he began his Pirates career in 2021.
The Phillies’ interest in Bednar has seen an uptick over the past month, as he’s dominated on the mound for the Pirates. If their interest continues to uptick, the Phillies could land a new reliever by the end of July.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 5, 2025, where it first appeared.