Talking to Mitch Keller in spring training, he said 2022 was "now or never" for him. He had a revamped fastball, renewed confidence and a prime opportunity to finally break out.
Seven starts into the season, that proclamation doesn't look so good. Pulled after just 4 2/3 innings Friday, Keller allowed five earned runs and took yet another loss as the Pirates fell to the Reds, 8-2, at PNC Park.
Keller was hit hard and often, allowing 11 hard-hit batted balls (95+ mph exit velocity). It was just the third time in his career he's ever surrendered that many, and the most it's happened to any Pirates pitcher this year.
And it was the fastball that primarily got hit. The Reds swung 18 times at it. They whiffed just twice. Three went for run-scoring extra-base hits. Six were hit hard.
"It's a location thing," a visibly more irked than normal Derek Shelton said after the game. "You can't leave balls in the middle of the plate. He did not execute very well tonight at all, and there were a ton of hard-hit balls because of it."
All had Keller had to say about his fastball assessment postgame was "bad execution."
This year, a National League analyst told me that even with his extra velocity, Keller's fastball shape is still flat and hittable. So far, hitters have. On the season now, hitters are 24-for-75 against his fastball (.320 average). He's throwing it more than ever this year. It hasn't gotten the results.
The other hope for the newfound velocity is Keller's breaking and offspeed stuff would play. His second pitch, the slider, was swung at 10 times. The Reds made contact all 10 times.
Through those first six starts, any source of optimism for Keller lied in some much better peripherals than actual results. Exit velocities were generally low. He was avoiding the barrel. So while his ERA was high, his expected ERA, FIP and other predictive stats were in the low 3s and 4s.
That won't be the case after allowing that much hard contact, all while his actual ERA ballooned up to 6.61.
And the record is 0-5.
"I'm not really worried about my own personal wins and losses," Keller said. "Those will come if I throw well. I’ve just gotta get back on the attack and get back after them."
"You have to execute to get wins at this level," Shelton said. "... Pitching at this level is a grind, and you have to continue to grind because nobody's given in, and if you don't execute, you're not making your opportunities. I think he's in a situation where he needs to make his own opportunities."
MORE FROM THE GAME
• Heath Hembree did not fare much better than Keller, also giving up a lot of hard contact which resulted in a pair of home runs.
Pirate pitchers allowed 18 hard-hit balls on the evening, their second-most of the season, just one fewer than their 21-0 loss to the Cubs last month.
"I think the connecting factor is we didn't pitch very well," Shelton said. "You leave balls in the middle of the plate, they're going to hit it hard, and we left a bunch of balls in the middle of the plate. We got hit hard."
• The Pirates' offense consisted of a leadoff home run by Ben Gamel and a third inning RBI double by Ke'Bryan Hayes.
Hayes' hit was a rarity for the Pirates of late since it came with a man on second. Since May 8, the Pirates are just 2-for-32 with runners in scoring position.
"We're creating opportunities and we have to capitalize on them, and we're not," Shelton said. "We need to figure out a way to get it done, and right now, we're not."
"We need to do a better job as a unit, just having team at-bats in those situations," Gamel said/ "Whatever it takes to move a runner or get a guy in, I think we’ve got to do, definitely, a better job getting the guy in.”
• Bryan Reynolds has struggled in those scoring opportunities in particular. He failed in both of his opportunities Friday and is now 1-for-25 with runners in scoring position.
"I think he looks a little bit in between [with his timing]," Shelton said. "When you have guys in the middle of the order that it's that drastic, it really stands out."
• Shelton said before the game that the team wants to give Michael Perez some runway at catcher, which is their usual terminology of viewing him as the starter for now. He went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts Friday.
• Before the game, right-hander Tyler Beede, who was claimed off waivers from the Giants Thursday, was activated. Lefty Cam Alldred, who made his major-league debut Thursday, was optioned to Class AAA Indianapolis.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard
THE INJURIES
• 10-day injured list: OF Jake Marisnick (thumb), SS Kevin Newman (groin)
• 60-day injured list: OF Greg Allen (hamstring), RHP Blake Cederlind (UCL), RHP Nick Mears (elbow surgery), Roberto Pérez (hamstring)
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Ben Gamel, LF
2. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
3. Bryan Reynolds, CF
4. Daniel Vogelbach, DH
5. Michael Chavis, 1B
6. Jack Suwinski, RF
7. Diego Castillo, SS
8. Michael Perez, C
9. Rodolfo Castro, 2B
And for David Bell's crew:
1. TJ Friedl, CF
2. Brandon Drury, 2B
3. Tommy Pham, LF
4. Mike Moustakas, 3B
5. Tyler Stephenson, C
6. Colin Moran, 1B
7. Tyler Naquin, DH
8. Kyle Farmer, SS
9. Albert Almora, Jr., CF
THE SCHEDULE
Game three of the four-game set will be Saturday at 6:35 p.m. Zach Thompson (1-3, 7.08) will take Luis Castillo (0-0, 5.79), with first pitch coming at 6:35 p.m. Jarrod Prugar will have you covered.
THE CONTENT
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