Pirates closer David Bednar not dwelling on lack of save opportunities amid losing streak

David Bednar walked through the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse this week wearing a black T-shirt with “Play Renegade” in gold letters, a nod to the walk-out song when the All-Star closer takes the mound.

The Pirates haven’t had many chances to play Renegade for Bednar at PNC Park this month, as they are mired in a season-worst, nine-game losing streak.

Bednar, who is tied for ninth in the major leagues and fourth in the National League with 14 saves, is adjusting to finishing games simply for the sake of staying loose. When he pitched a scoreless ninth inning in Wednesday’s 8-3 loss to the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park, it marked his third outing this month where there was no save opportunity.

“Obviously, that’s the spot that I want to be in and for the whole team; if I’m in that spot, that means we’re going to be in position to win some games,” said Bednar, who ranks behind Cincinnati’s Alexis Diaz (20), San Francisco’s Camilo Doval (19) and San Diego’s Josh Hader (18) among NL saves leaders. “It just comes down to coming in here every single day ready to throw no matter what. Obviously, it sucks that these (type of games) have to happen but it’s part of that long season.”

Bednar has been through this before. He went 30 days without a save, making seven appearances between April 29 and May 30 without having a save opportunity. Then Bednar earned four saves in six days, including in three consecutive games from June 2-4. That had Pirates manager Derek Shelton touting Bednar as one of the game’s premier closers — and the Mars alum looking like a good bet for a second consecutive selection to the All-Star Game.

“You don’t see a lot of closers or even back-end leverage guys who have three elite pitches — and we’re talking with the curveball and the split, along with the fastball — the ability to do that,” Shelton said. “And the other thing with David is he stays in attack mode and he goes right at you. And because the fastball has so much late life to it, it’s hard to hit in the zone.”

Since then, Bednar’s chances have been limited. Shelton used him in the ninth inning of a 14-7 win over the New York Mets on June 9, mostly because Bednar hadn’t pitched in five days. The rust showed, as Bednar gave up two runs on three hits in one-third of an inning.

That taught Bednar that he has to treat every appearance the same.

“Honestly, I think if you take your foot off the gas even a little bit I think they can sense that,” Bednar said, “so I try to still go high-intent, high-everything and still try to get guys out and stay sharp.”

Bednar’s last save came two days later, when he allowed one hit and had a strikeout in a scoreless ninth in a 2-1 win over the Mets. He didn’t appear for another week, pitching the eighth inning of a 5-2 loss at Milwaukee on June 18 before finishing Wednesday’s game.

Instead of dwelling on his lack of save chances, Bednar is focused on taking some pressure off a beleaguered bullpen that has dealt with injuries and ineffectiveness. The Pirates have been without relievers Wil Crowe and Jarlin Garcia, who are both on the 60-day injured list. They designated Chase De Jong and Duane Underwood Jr. for assignment. They traded Robert Stephenson, who had been serving as the bridge, to Tampa Bay. Setup man Colin Holderman (right wrist) is on the IL, as are lefties Jose Hernandez (right calf) and Rob Zastryzny (left forearm).

“It’s definitely tough,” Bednar said. “It’s a tight-knit group down there. We have faith in everyone out there and everybody who comes up and helps out. We treat it like one big family. I think everyone is pulling for one another, and we have confidence and faith in everyone out there.”

Shelton, however, acknowledged that Dauri Moreta has been a bit out of whack in giving up five runs on three hits and two walks with only one strikeout since moving to a high-leverage role.

“That’s just part of it. It’s a long season and stuff is going to happen,” Bednar said. “Good teams find a way to roll with the punches and find a way to win. I think we’re on the cusp of that. We’re more than capable of turning this around. This is just a bump in the road. We’re ready to go to Miami and have a good series and right the ship.”