{"id":123742,"date":"2026-06-12T14:19:04","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T18:19:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=123742"},"modified":"2026-06-12T14:19:04","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T18:19:04","slug":"3-pirates-minor-league-rp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2026\/06\/12\/3-pirates-minor-league-rp\/","title":{"rendered":"Pirates Minor League Relievers to Keep Tabs On"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pittsburgh Pirates\u2019 Major League bullpen<\/a> has become hard to watch. They have just 0.2 fWAR since the start of May, which is the eighth-lowest total in baseball in that time. Unfortunately, we\u2019re going to have to wait<\/a> a few more weeks until the relief pitcher trade market<\/a> begins to form. That means the Pirates will have to look in their own system for some help. The Pirates certainly have some interesting relievers in the upper levels of their minor league system, some of which are definitely worth keeping an eye on.<\/p>\n

Pirates Minor League Relievers to Keep Tabs On<\/h2>\n

\"Pirates<\/p>\n

Noah Murdock<\/h3>\n

The Pirates signed Noah Murdock<\/a> in November to a minor league contract. The right-hander struggled in 17 Major League innings last year with the Athletics after they selected him from the Kansas City Royals in the Rule 5 Draft. He allowed 25 earned runs and 26 hits. Although Murdock struggled badly in his brief time in 2025, he is off to a promising start in 2026.<\/p>\n

It has only been 22 innings, but the hard-throwing reliever has a 3.27 ERA, 0.91 WHIP between three levels of the minor leagues. Murdock is striking out nearly 30% of opponents with a 29.4% K%. The right-hander has a called swinging strike rate approaching 30% at 28.5%. His 66.7% ground ball rate is the eighth-highest mark among any minor league pitcher with at least 20 IP. However, the most encouraging part of his game this year has been his 7.1% walk rate. Last year, Murdock walked 20.4% of the batters he walked in his first look against MLB hitters. The A\u2019s eventually returned him to the Royals, and he put up a 13.1% BB% over 21 innings for their Triple-A affiliate.<\/p>\n

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Noah Murdock has been promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis!<\/p>\n

The 6\u20198\u201d right-hander is an intriguing option for the Pirates with his deceptiveness.<\/p>\n

This season, Murdock has posted a 4.00 ERA with 18 strikeouts and a 1.00 WHIP. An interesting arm to watch \ud83d\udc40 pic.twitter.com\/lrvPRBNuWg<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Behind the Bucs (@BehindTheBucs) June 2, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n