The New York Yankees have made an MLB trade deadline day splash.
New York is acquiring two-time All-Star closer David Bednar from the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to multiple reports on Thursday.
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal was first to report the deal.
New York reportedly is sending a trio of prospects to Pittsburgh: catchers Rafael Flores and Edgleen Perez, along with outfielder Brian Sanchez. Flores and Perez were the Yankees’ eighth- and 14th-ranked prospects, respectively, according to MLB.com.
Bednar, 30, has rebounded from a down 2024 campaign, sporting a 2.37 ERA with 51 strikeouts and 10 walks in 38 innings across 42 appearances this season. The right-hander is also a perfect 17-for-17 in save opportunities.
Bednar is under club control for one more season beyond 2025.
A second-round pick of the San Diego Padres in 2016, Bednar enjoyed his MLB breakout season with Pittsburgh in 2021. He made back-to-back All-Star Games the following two seasons, tying for the National League lead in saves with 39 in 2023.
Bednar’s ERA then ballooned to 5.77 over 62 appearances last year, and he was surprisingly optioned to Triple-A after a shaky few appearances in Pittsburgh’s season-opening series. But Bednar has been stellar since spending a few weeks in the minors.
In another bullpen move Thursday, the Yankees acquired right-hander Jake Bird from the Colorado Rockies. The 29-year-old has a 4.73 ERA with 62 strikeouts and 23 walks in 53.1 innings over 45 appearances. He made 188 appearances over four seasons with Colorado, sporting a 4.57 ERA.
The cost to acquire Bird was second baseman Roc Riggo and left-handed pitcher Ben Shields, the Yankees’ 10th- and 28th-ranked prospects, respectively, according to MLB.com.
The Yankees had been seeking late-inning options for their bullpen, which entered Thursday with a 4.24 ERA — including a 6.27 mark in July.
Devin Williams began the season as the closer but struggled in the first month and temporarily lost the job to Luke Weaver. Williams started pitching better and regained the ninth-inning role — but Weaver has struggled since returning from a hamstring injury that sidelined him for three weeks in June.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.