Which Pirate is worthy of the All-Star Game? David Bednar, Bryan Reynolds are best bets

A day before Aaron Judge hit a grand slam for his 30th home run, David Bednar got the New York Yankees slugger to go down looking at a curveball for the final out to the cheers from a standing, sellout crowd at PNC Park.

As reluctant as Derek Shelton has been to call Bednar the closer, the Pittsburgh Pirates manager didn’t hesitate after his save in the 5-2 win over the Yankees on Tuesday night to campaign for the right-handed reliever to be selected to play in the Midsummer Classic.

“I would be hard pressed for anyone to tell me why he’s not an All-Star, with as well as he’s pitched,” Shelton said of Bednar. “He was the reliever of the month in May. He continues to execute pitches and do a good job. It would be more of a case of I think you would have to prove to me why he should not be on the team.”

With a fastball that touches triple digits and a curveball that can freeze even baseball’s most feared hitters, Bednar appears the best bet to be selected Sunday to represent the Pirates on the National League team in the 92nd All-Star Game on July 19 at Dodger Stadium.

“I feel like Bednar has been pretty lights-out all season for us,” Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes said. “Whenever he comes into the game, and we have the lead in the ninth … we have a lot of confidence in him to close the door.”

Hayes was one of a handful of Pirates players who were quick to mention Bryan Reynolds as another deserving All-Star. Reynolds, who started in center field for the NL last year, is slashing .257/.337/.436 with 10 doubles, three triples, 15 home runs and 32 RBIs in 80 games.

Every MLB team gets at least one All-Star representative, although the Pirates had two starters last year in Reynolds and second baseman Adam Frazier. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal picked Reynolds as the Pirates’ rep because of the depth of talent at pitcher and the lack of it in center field. The top NL candidate in center is Brandon Nimmo of the New York Mets, who is slashing .278/.360/.438 with 14 doubles, five triples, seven homers and 30 RBIs.

If only one Pirate is picked, however, Reynolds would go with Bednar.

“He’s been dominant for us all year,” Reynolds said. “He’s a bulldog. I think Bednar deserves it.”

The 6-foot-1, 250-pound Mars alum is 3-2 with a 2.31 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in 39 innings over 32 appearances. Opponents are batting .190 against Bednar, who is averaging 12.1 strikeouts per nine innings and has earned 14 saves in 17 opportunities. He has become a PNC Park folk hero who enters games to the Steelers anthem, “Renegade,” by Styx, accompanied with a video.

“Everybody knows when he comes in,” Pirates reliever Chris Stratton said. “The other team knows how he’s attacking and what he’s going to do. He’s just on you. He’s going to try to blow a fastball by you. If you’re on that, he’ll try to get you off-balance another way. The way he goes about his business every day, the preparation he puts in, I hope he gets the nod.”

Bednar faces stiff competition from traditional closers such as Milwaukee’s Josh Hader (25 saves), San Diego submariner Taylor Rogers (23 saves) and Kenley Jansen of the Atlanta Braves (20 saves).

Where Bednar separates himself is he has made 10 multi-inning appearances, including five of two innings or more. He had four strikeouts in two innings three times: at the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 30, in an eight-out save at the St. Louis Cardinals on June 15 and in a 4-3 win over the San Francisco Giants on June 19 at PNC Park. It took a toll on Bednar, who dealt with lower back discomfort and had a 5.40 ERA in eight appearances in June.

“Bednar’s been one of the best relievers in the game,” Pirates designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach said. “In big spots, he’s thrown a lot. For as much as he’s thrown, to have the ERA and stats that he has is impressive.”

An American League All-Star with Seattle in 2019, Vogelbach has long advocated that Reynolds deserves repeat All-Star recognition because of his Gold Glove-caliber defense in center and his power at the plate. Reynolds has a 163-game errorless streak in center field, which trails only Andrew McCutchen’s 189-game stretch at the position in franchise history. Since the start of the 2021 season, Reynolds has more homers (38) than any center fielder in baseball and ranks among the leaders at his position in hits, doubles, OPS, slugging percentage and batting average.

After overcoming a slow start — he batted .194 in April and .225 in May — Reynolds slashed .333/.379/.610 with eight home runs and 19 RBIs in June, including a three-homer, six-RBI game June 29 at Washington.

Did that monster month open eyes around baseball?

“It opened eyes for people that closed them,” Vogelbach said. “If you know anything about Bryan as a player, you never were really worried. I think I said that in the first month: The way he goes about his work, the at-bats that he has, how hard he hits the ball, you knew it was just a matter of time. Less than a year ago, he was the starting center fielder in the All-Star Game. Not just anybody gets to do that. Bryan’s back to being the player that he is, and it’s just going to continue to go up.”

Reynolds called participating in the All-Star festivities last year a “surreal” experience that was “something you’ve always dreamed of.” It provided a boost of confidence to Reynolds, who isn’t shy about wanting to play in it again.

“I think that’s everybody’s goal,” Reynolds said. “They don’t necessarily say it, but everybody’s goal is to perform well and do your best. Sometimes, that equals going to that.”

For now, Bednar isn’t paying much attention to the All-Star hype.

“I’m just happy to be in that conversation,” Bednar said. “It would be humbling (to be selected), without a doubt. I think we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”