OnlyBucs

4A5773717F1A0 wrote: Who knows what sort of off season workout schedule Keller was on. He's young and likely doesn't have a good idea of what he needs to do to be physically and mentally ready.  Then he gets thrown into the MLB spring training rotation.  He's pitching against the best hitters he's ever faced, likely not really ready physically.  And it isn't like he's pitching late in the game against minor leaguers.  He has been pitching against the top hitters.



Nothing to worry about.
I somewhat disagree. I agree in the fact that he may be working on certain pitches and or command of pitch location. However he is not facing the top hitters in MLB. Most of the hitters he is facing won’t even be on the opening day roster. When your ERA is over 20 I’m sure your confidence level must be taking a hit. Hopefully this is just a bump in the road, but I am a little concerned.

3B37366D646D65686F706A5D0 wrote: Who knows what sort of off season workout schedule Keller was on. He's young and likely doesn't have a good idea of what he needs to do to be physically and mentally ready.  Then he gets thrown into the MLB spring training rotation.  He's pitching against the best hitters he's ever faced, likely not really ready physically.  And it isn't like he's pitching late in the game against minor leaguers.  He has been pitching against the top hitters.



Nothing to worry about.
I agree it is nothing to worry about, but it would have been good for him, if he had at least one successful outing this spring. It would give him a little confidence going into this AAA season.
That's true but it's still a good experience for Keller. Cole Tucker was saying that this ST he feels like he belongs there instead of last year when he was there just to get a brief taste of it. He won't go north with them but his confidence is soaring. Last year Keller got in 1 game in ST and pitched 2 innings. This year he's being used like someone they expect to contribute in the not too distant future. Despite his rocky outings, it's probably a confidence booster to know the Pirates want to take a good, long look at him this spring.

02272424311A272F2D3A480 wrote: Who knows what sort of off season workout schedule Keller was on. He's young and likely doesn't have a good idea of what he needs to do to be physically and mentally ready.  Then he gets thrown into the MLB spring training rotation.  He's pitching against the best hitters he's ever faced, likely not really ready physically.  And it isn't like he's pitching late in the game against minor leaguers.  He has been pitching against the top hitters.



Nothing to worry about.
I somewhat disagree. I agree in the fact that he may be working on certain pitches and or command of pitch location. However he is not facing the top hitters in MLB. Most of the hitters he is facing won’t even be on the opening day roster. When your ERA is over 20 I’m sure your confidence level must be taking a hit. Hopefully this is just a bump in the road, but I am a little concerned.


In his first two games (Minnesota and TB) he was pitching against largely MLB starters. I don't know who was still in the game for Toronto yesterday.

Just was reading on the Bucs Dugout Site that Keller recently got rocked in the first inning of a minor league game and was removed because of the large pitch count. I am wondering if he is hurt, and trying to pitch without informing the medical staff of an injury. He appears to be not the pitcher he was in the past.

His stat sheet looked bad after the callup to AAA last year.



He reportedly had a plus fastball (mid-90's and better), and plus PLUS curveball already with solid to good command and control of both. Changeup OK.



His control supposedly left him a little in AAA last year and hasn't come back. Whether that's true or not, I don't know. The stat sheet shows more that he just started getting hit and hit often and that hasn't stopped this spring. That could be a result of losing control and falling behind.



However, tough for me to think that's the case since our favorite Tampa Ray, Tyler Glasnow, dominated AAA hitters regularly with poor control and less (supposed) arsenal than Keller.



Bridge year. Just gotta get to Keller. That's why we signed Ryan Vogels... I mean, Jordan Lyles for #5.

Tyler Glasnow gave up five runs and walked four in 3 2/3 innings against the Yankees on Tuesday.

Glasnow's rotation spot was written in pen coming into the spring, but there's still time to find out if the Rays used invisible ink. After four starts, the right-hander has an 11.00 ERA and an 11/7 K/BB ratio in nine innings. There's still tons of upside here, and the Rays probably won't bail on him as their No. 3 starter just yet. However, he's not leaving himself with much of a margin for error for the start of the regular season.

During the minor league seasons everyone talked about Glasnow and now Keller. They both have had their struggles, and possibly will overcome them. It is kind of amazing that J T Brubaker who did not get all the publicity like Glasnow and Keller, could end up being the better of both of them.

Keller had another unimpressive outing last night. He only pitched 4innings gave up 3 runs, walked 1batter and gave up 8 hits. I think he has a long way to go before he sees Pittsburgh. On the other hand maybe it is good he is struggling, because Glasnow breezed through AAA, but struggled when he arrived in Pittsburgh. I do hope Keller becomes the pitcher that everyone is projecting.

Keller pitched an inning of relief tonight. That is a little weird because he is being developed into a starter. Just rechecked the box score and it now does not show Keller pitched in relief.

Mitch Keller was named as the International League Pitcher of the Week