Pirates' Justin Lawrence: Settles with Pittsburgh

The Pirates and Lawrence avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $1.225 million contract Thursday, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.

Lawrence had been arbitration-eligible for the second time. The righty was limited to only 17 appearances in 2025 due to injury, but he was highly effective when on the bump, yielding just one run with a 23:8 K:BB over 17.2 frames. Lawrence should operate in a middle-relief role in 2026.