Mitch Keller has never been a guest on the “Pat McAfee Show.” Fans do not celebrate in shock when he responds well after a poor outing, nor do they hyper-analyze his every inning hoping to find signs of growth.
At 28 years old, Keller is no longer a promising young talent. Unlike the rest of the Pirates’ starting rotation, he is now an established big leaguer. But while Pittsburgh continues to celebrate the emergence of Paul Skenes, Jared Jones and Bailey Falter, Keller has been exactly what his club expected him to be in 2024: The ace of the staff.
“Mitch was an All-Star last year, and I think everyone knows who he is,” manager Derek Shelton said. “Obviously, the two young kids have kind of burst onto the scene, but Mitch is consistent and I think that’s what we need. We’re talking about a guy that is now the veteran of the staff and is somebody for the rest of the group to lean on.”
Now in the prime of his career, Keller is who he is. His fastball doesn’t reach triple digits and his arsenal doesn’t include a pitch with a unique name. But no matter the opponent, ballpark or weather conditions, he has delivered.
Keller’s quality start Saturday in Toronto marked his 43rd straight outing in which he went at least five innings. The streak is currently the longest in MLB and tied for sixth-longest in franchise history. Some are impressed with Keller’s consistency. He, however, would settle for nothing less.
“Coming up through the minor leagues, that was the thing,” Keller said. “Starters go as deep as possible. That was the M.O: three pitches or less to every batter, go as deep as you can into the game. I think that really helped me when I got to the big leagues and started seeing success. Like, OK, I can do this and be efficient.”
Keller has been more than just efficient as of late; he’s been unbeatable. After going 2-3 with a 4.98 ERA in the month of April, the All-Star right-hander has tallied a win in each of his last five outings, becoming the first Pirate to do so since J.A. Happ in 2015.
The hot streak started on May 6, when he threw his second career complete game in a 4-1 victory over the Angels. Keller went on to deliver three more quality starts that month, finishing May with a 1.30 ERA.
His success rolled into June last weekend, as six innings of one-run ball against the Blue Jays once again led the Pirates to victory. Now boasting a 7-3 record, Keller has reached seven wins by June 1 in back-to-back seasons. The only other pitchers to achieve that feat in the past decade? Justin Verlander, Clayton Kershaw, Felix Hernandez and Adam Wainwright.
“The guy is a workhorse,” Falter said of Keller. “He got paid for a reason. I love what he does on the mound. He’s going out there to give us six, seven innings every single game. That’s what we expect out of him, and he expects that, too. He tries to go out there and put the team on his back, like everyone should, and provide for the boys.”
Perhaps the most impressive element of Keller’s dominant run is his displayed growth. In the early portion of his career, when there were far more questions than answers, the biggest concern was consistency. He had yet to figure out a way to deliver when his stuff was not at its absolute best.
But those days are long gone.
Keller’s outing last weekend serves as an example of how far he has come. After needing 80 pitches to get through his first four innings, he found a way to adjust and become more efficient in his final two frames. It was far from his most dominant day on the mound, but it was, again, enough to put his team in a position to win.
“I think in the past, if I didn’t have my best stuff, I’d get discouraged about it or whatever,” Keller said. “But at the end of the day, it’s about making pitches, executing spots and getting a little lucky sometimes.”
Keller’s maturity and wisdom now serve as additional tools in the Pirates’ clubhouse. As the rest of the team’s rotation looks to put together their first full, productive season in the majors, each of them knows he is there to help.
“Getting to pick his brain, what he likes doing and what he does out there, just watching him pitch, it’s huge for us guys,” Jones said. “Especially me and Skenes, who are just getting up here. You take everything he says and store it in the brain.”
Keller’s starts don’t typically result in viral highlights. His even-keel personality does not often produce attention-grabbing quotes. He’s not the youngest, flashiest pitcher on the Pirates’ roster. Consistently winning in a quiet, efficient fashion is more than enough for Keller.
He knows his role — and so do his teammates.
“He is the ace of our staff right now,” Falter said. “We paid him all of that money for a reason. He’s been doing a great job and really takes care of us young guys. He’s just a good guy to lean on, someone who really cares about his teammates. He’s just a good guy to have on your team and an elite baseball player.”
