Perrotto: Stark Contrast Between ’19 Mitch Keller, ’23 Mitch Keller (+)
It is fitting that the Pittsburgh Pirates will open the season in Cincinnati with Mitch Keller on the mound.
Keller will be pitching on March 30 against the Reds at Great American Ball Park, the site of his major league debut on May 27, 2019. Pirates manager Derek Shelton picked Keller to pitch the opener earlier this week.
There is a vast difference between the Keller of 2019 and 2023.
Back on that Memorial Day evening in Cincinnati, Keller looked overwhelmed when he took the mound.
The Pirates had already bungled Keller’s initial major-league start when calling him up from Triple-A Indianapolis. Management decided to pitch Keller in the second game of the day-night doubleheader.
Thus, Keller had to sit in the visiting clubhouse throughout the afternoon, contemplating his debut. By the time he got to the mound, the light-skinned Keller looked as pale as a ghost.
Thinking is not always a good thing in baseball.
The Reds proceeded to score six runs in the first inning. Though Keller then pitched three scoreless innings before being removed from the game, it was a terrible debut.
Granted, Keller hasn’t found a whole lot of success in the big leagues since that debacle. His career record is 12-29 with a 5.00 ERA in 70 games over four seasons.
However, a strong finish to last season has Keller and the Pirates optimistic about this year. He is a trendy pick of many scouts and statistical analysts to become a breakout star in 2023.
Shelton has seen Mitch Keller’s maturation process since he took over as manager prior to the start of the 2020 season. It is a big part of the reason why Shelton tabbed the 26-year-old for his first career opening-day start.
“I think we’ve seen him grow up,” Shelton said. “We’ve seen him grow up physically. We’re seeing him grow up mentally. His body has transformed in the four years I’ve been here into looking like a starting pitcher. You look at the way his lower half is now, but you have to do that. He’s 25, 26 years old and that’s the transformation you make. It’s a credit to all the hard work he’s done.
“And then the mindset, having some success last year and, more importantly, the days that he didn’t have success, how he was able to bounce back, whether it was an inning, a complete outing, and his overall mindset, that’s the maturity that we were looking for and he really did a nice job the last year the last couple months.”
Keller’s overall record last year was just 5-12 but his ERA of 3.91 was better than the major-league average. He pitched very well after the All-Star break with his 2-5 mark offset by a 3.09 ERA in 13 starts.
Keller stepped up his workout routine following the 2021 seasons and believes he is now stronger physically than he has ever been. That is showing in his fastball velocity as he now regularly hits 98-99 mph.
However, what stands outs more than his physical strength, pitch location or arm speed is how much mentally stronger Keller has become. He now has an air of confidence – not cockiness — about him.
It’s as if Mitch Keller knows he only belongs in the major leagues but is in a position to thrive.
“Honestly, I know deep down in my mind and my heart that I belong and that I am a good pitcher,” Keller said. “It’s just how can I piece it together? I think we really kind of got in a groove there last year. I had a lot of success in the minor leagues and the feeling that I had on the mound last year during those good stretches was how I was feeling in those successful minor league years.
“A lot of confidence, really good tempo and delivery, just going out there with minimal thoughts about what’s going on and just pitching. That’s kind of how I felt and I’m really excited for that to continue on in 2023 because I feel just a lot better about how everything’s going.”
The transformation has been stark. The pitcher who takes the mound on March 30 in Cincinnati will be nothing like the kid who got shelled at Great American Ball Park nearly four years earlier.
It’s a credit to Keller for not giving up and the Pittsburgh Pirates for not giving up on him.
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