PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates had issues with their bullpen last season, but there are some internal options to help them in 2027.

The Pirates named right-handed relief pitcher Derek Diamond as their Kent Tekulve Reliever of the Year, honoring the best bullpen arm in the farm system.

Diamond, a sixth-round pick out of Mississippi in the 2022 MLB Draft, had his best season yet in 2026 and showed that he can succeed coming out of the bullpen.

The Pirates should explore all options to make the best bullpen next year and Diamond has shown that he can do exactly that.

Diamond Embraces New Relief Role

Diamond spent his first two full seasons as a professional in the starter role, but moved to the bullpen in 2025 and fully embraced the role this year, as he was far healthier than last season.

"I haven’t changed the way I see myself at all," Diamond said to the media about his role. "I think I could certainly be a starting pitcher. I can be a long relief bullpen arm, and I can certainly be a closer. I’m not too concerned with that right now. I’m not as concerned with labels as I am with getting better at pitching...

"The most fun part about this year was getting better, improving. That’s what I’m really looking forward to. I don’t care what label they put on me. I don’t care when they throw me out there. I just want to do it again. I want to strike out more people."

Pittsburgh needs this kind of attitude when it comes to young pitchers embracing the bullpen role, before potentially getting a chance to start.

Both Braxton Ashcraft and Bubba Chandler went through this in 2025, before taking on a starting role in 2026.

The Arizona Fall League was crucial for Diamond, who fully embraced the relief role and fell in love with baseball once again.

Diamond also spoke a great deal about his mentality on why he had success this season, working with Pirates mental performance coaches in Ryan Jackson and Jose Corrales, Drake Davis on Instagram, as well as Gold medal winner American figure skater Alysa Liu.

"Her performance was unbelievable," Diamond said. "It was beautiful to watch. Even cooler was listening to her interviews before and after. She talked about how she stopped performing for her coaches. She stopped performing for other people. She dove into the art. She refused to do her art for anyone except herself.

"That was really inspiring to me. I tried to adopt that mindset a little bit. My new slogan was, ‘I’m not a young, hot shot prospect anymore. I’m just an old fart out here doing it for the love of the game.’ I think that really loosened me up..."

Whether Diamond becomes a starting pitcher again or not, his mentality is what will get him to the major leagues in the near future.

Why Diamond Could Excel at MLB Level

Diamond excelled in 2026, posting a 7-0 record across 37 outings, a 2.48 ERA over 58 innings, with 57 strikeouts to nine walks, a .231 BAA and a 1.02 WHIP.

While he pitched across four levels, he spent most of the season with Triple-A Indianapolis, putting up a 5-0 record in 29 appearances and two starts, a 3.14 ERA over 43 innings, 39 strikeouts to eight walks, a .259 BAA and a 1.19 WHIP.

Diamond mostly relies on a fastball-slider combo, but can also throw a curveball, sinker, or changeup if needed.

He's got solid velocity on the four-seam, 95.2 mph, while getting good rise on it, 15.1 inches of induced vertical break, which gives him a 23.4% whiff rate and 32.5% chase rate on it.

Diamond also utilizes his lower arm angle and good extension to be deceptive with his pitch, giving him more success at the Triple-A level.

He had one of the lowest walk rates, 4.5%, which counters his average strikeout rate, 21.8%.

Diamond has struggled with hard-hit contact (41.4%) and average exit velocity (88.1 mph), so inducing weaker contact should be a big part of his game next season.

Rule 5 Draft Could Impact Diamond's Tenure With Pirates

Diamond is eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this offseason, which would allow another team to place him on their MLB roster if selected.

The Pirates can place Diamond on the 40-man roster to prevent this from happening, but that would require them seeing him as a future part of the franchise this season.

They did this with Esmerlyn Valdez and pitchers Antwone Kelly and Wilber Dotel last season, all of whom had an impact on the Pirates this season.

It's also likely there is no Rule 5 Draft this year, with an impending lockout coming if a new collective bargaining agreement isn't ratified by Dec. 2 at midnight.

Diamond is ready for whatever happens this offseason and will take on that challenge when it comes.

"...I'm as confident as I've ever been," Diamond said. "And I've always been confident, so I think that's saying a lot. I'll go pitch to anyone right now, next year, for anyone, and just be excited about it. 

"As far as my approach to you know the Rule 5 and what could happen, it's absolutely nothing. I can't control what happens. I don't know what's going to happen with the CBA. I don't know if they're going to have the Rule 5 draft. And frankly, it's something I can't control, so I really don't care at all. However it works out, it's going to work in my favor. I know God is on my side. So no anxiety, nothing like that."