Pirates' Arbitration Estimates Revealed
As the Pittsburgh Pirates turn their full attention towards the offseason, there's now more clarity on the salaries of their arbitration-eligible players heading into the 2025 season.
MLB Trade Rumors released its annual projections on Tuesday, and the Pirates' figures came in at the following values:
- Dennis Santana (4.126): $1.8MM
- David Bednar (4.076): $6.6MM
- Ben Heller (3.165): $1MM
- Connor Joe (3.136): $3.2MM
- Johan Oviedo (3.079): $1.5MM
- Bryan De La Cruz (3.056): $4MM
- Joey Bart (3.020): $1.8MM
- Colin Holderman (2.144): $1.4MM
- Bailey Falter (2.138): $2.8MM
Bednar is the most intriguing name among this bunch after he endured a rough 2024 campaign. In 62 games and 57 2/3 innings, he recorded a 5.77 ERA, 4.80 FIP, 9.05 K/9 and 4.37 BB/9, all of which were the lowest marks of his career in a full season.
Bednar, as a hometown player, quickly became a fan favorite in Pittsburgh after arriving from the San Diego Padres as part of the Joe Musgrove trade back in January of 2021. The team opted against trading him despite his status as an All-Star in both 2022 and 2023, and now his future is up in the air given the fact that he's set to make just under $7 million with two years of club control left.
De La Cruz was viewed as a missing piece to the Pirates' lineup when the club acquired him from the Miami Marlins at the trade deadline this season. He performed well below expectations, however, as he hit .200/.220/.294 with three home runs over 44 games in the black and gold. With an estimated arbitration figure of $4 million, De La Cruz could very well be non-tendered in November after making a poor first impression in Pittsburgh.
Joe isn't particularly likely to make it through the non-tender deadline in November, either. The 31-year-old posted a .760 OPS in '23, though he took a sizable step back this year by slashing .228/.320/.368 with 0.5 fWAR across 123 contests.
Falter and Oviedo, on the other hand, are likely to stick around as options at the back-end of the Pirates' rotation. Falter finished with a 4.43 ERA in 28 starts while Oviedo missed the entire '24 campaign after undergoing Tommy John surgery last December.
Bart and Holderman are both locks to remain on the roster as well.
Pittsburgh traded for Bart in April after he was designated for assignment by the San Francisco Giants, and he quickly became a crucial component of the team's lineup after batting .265/.337/.462 with 13 homers, 1.3 fWAR and a 121 wRC+ over 80 contests.
Holderman drew the ire of Pirates fans throughout the year by blowing five saves, but he posted a sparkling 3.16 ERA in 55 appearances and holds three more seasons of team control.
Santana was lights-out with a 2.44 ERA and 2.45 FIP across 39 games out of the bullpen for Pittsburgh in '24, making it hard to see a world in which the club lets him go this offseason after claiming him off waivers from the New York Yankees in June.
As for Heller, he was responsible for a 11.25 ERA over eight appearances as a Pirate and likely doesn't have a future with the team.
