If there is anything the Pittsburgh Pirates must target as the trade deadline approaches, it is fixing their bullpen. The Pirates’ bullpen has had plenty of struggles this year. Since the start of May, they have a 4.78 ERA, 4.41 FIP, and 1.41 WHIP. While they’ve struck out 23.3% of opponents, they also have a sub-par 11.3% walk rate and 1.14 HR/9 ratio. The Pirates’ bullpen has a -0.71 win percentage added, the lowest among teams above .500 at the time of writing. While fans want them to go after some of the big names on the relief pitching market, like Aroldis Chapman, there are plenty of other, quality arms they could target that aren’t getting talked about nearly as much.
The Pirates’ bullpen needs help, and nobody seems to be talking about these trade targets as potential fixes.
Yennier Cano
Yennier Cano broke onto the scene with an excellent 2023 All-Star rookie season and followed that up with a quality encore campaign in 2024. Unfortunately, 2025 was a departure from his usual performance. Cano’s strikeout rate and ground ball rate fell, while his home run rate went up, and his walk rate hovered around 10%. However, it seems that Cano realigned himself and is making a comeback.
Cano has pitched 26.2 innings so far this season, working to a 2.03 ERA, 2.47 FIP, and a 0.86 WHIP. The right-hander is getting more swings and misses than he ever has before. His 29.8% whiff rate is a career-best mark, and his K% went from sub-20% last year to 25.7% this year. His 34% chase rate is another career high and has helped him post a 6.7% walk rate. Cano is one of eight qualified relievers with a ground ball percentage of at least 60% (he sits exactly at 60%).
Many other numbers suggest that he is back. Cano has a sub-3.00 xFIP (2.99) and SIERA (2.78) and is in the 80th percentile of xERA (3.17). His FanGraphs Stuff+ went from 100 last year to 109 this year. He hasn’t seen as much high-leverage action compared to previous seasons. His leverage index is 0.90, down from 1.84 in 2023-2024. However, he is starting to see more important innings. Cano is under control through the 2028 season so that he could be a fixture in the Pirates’ bullpen for multiple more seasons. Cano was a quality setup man less than 2 years ago but doesn’t seem to get as much attention in the trade market as others.
Steven Okert
Veteran left-hander Steven Okert could never seem to string together successful seasons in a row. That was until the Houston Astros signed him during the 2024-2025 offseason. Since joining the ‘Stros, Okert is the owner of a 2.78 ERA, a 2.93 FIP, and a 0.90 WHIP over his last 110 innings of work. He has plenty of other promising peripherals beyond the bottom line.
Okert has a healthy 28.3% strikeout percentage and has induced a whiff percentage clocking in at 29.4%. When opponents do put the ball in play against him, it is rarely ever good contact. He has had just an 87.9-MPH exit velocity and a 6.3% barrel rate over the last two years. Okert has also limited walks well, with a 7.1% BB%. He is one of only eight lefty relievers over the last two seasons to have at least 80 IP and a K-BB% of at least 20% (Okert comes in at 21.4%).
Okert has yet to pitch much in high-leverage situations. His average leverage index with the Astros is 0.91, which is below 1.0 in both 2025 and 2026. However, his 113 FanGraphs Stuff+ is plenty good enough to play in higher leverage if a team asked him to. Okert is only a rental. He is only getting paid just over $2.3 million this year. While the Pirates’ bullpen already has a handful of quality lefties, it’s clear they need help in any form. For one of only 4 lefty relievers with a sub-3.00 ERA, FIP, and sub-1.00 WHIP, he certainly isn’t getting much attention on the trade market.
Anthony Bender
For a reliever who has consistently posted quality numbers, year-in-year-out, Miami Marlins right-hander Anthony Bender certainly isn’t getting the hype he deserves. Bender is one of just five relievers in the 2020s with at least 200 IP and an ERA under 3.00 (fewer than five games started). He is having a quality 2026 season, posting a 2.73 ERA, 2.50 FIP, and 0.97 WHIP over his first 33 innings.
Bender’s 28.9% strikeout rate is currently a career-high mark. While his 23.7% whiff rate is lower than his career-average mark, his overall called+swinging strike rate of 35.6% is another career-best. His 27.2% called strike rate is the best in the league, by far. The second highest among qualified bullpen arms is St. Louis Cardinals’ left-hander JoJo Romero. Bender also has a solid 8.9% walk rate and has allowed just one home run all year. Both his 88.5 MPH exit velocity and 7.4% barrel rate are better than league average.
Bender has always thrown quality stuff. FanGraphs Stuff+ puts him at 114. That also matches his career average. He also regularly sees higher-leverage innings, with a leverage index of 1.38 this year and 1.44 for his career. The right-hander still has a year of control left after the 2026 season, so he could be a setup option for the Pirates’ bullpen next year as well.
Main Image Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
