Baseball Pirates’ Mitch Keller looks for bounce-back 2020 season Mitch Keller is looking to prove himself at the big league level in 2020 with the Pirates. by Eli Fishman April 10, 2020 In his Major League debut at Great American Ballpark on May 27, 2019, 22-year-old Pirates pitcher Mitch Keller had a lot of weight on his shoulders. Keller was the talk of the farm system after a 2018 season in which he pitched in the prestigious All-Star Futures game in Washington D.C., and was ranked by MLB Pipeline and Baseball America as the Pirates top prospect. The right-handed starting pitcher has some of the best stuff in the minor leagues, posting a career 3.12 career ERA. Keller’s Major League debut did not go as planned. He allowed seven hits and six runs in four innings of work. The following day he was demoted back to the minors. The Pirates promoted him a few more times throughout the season, but he struggled at the big league level, giving up 72 hits in his 11 starts, and posting a 7.13 ERA before being demoted yet again to close out the season. Before the suspension of 2020 Spring Training, I chatted with Keller about his rookie season. “I had a lot of good outings and some that weren’t so good, but I’m just taking all those experiences into this year with what I’ve learned and I hope that good things come from it.” “I’m feeling really good,” Keller said before a February spring game in Bradenton. “We’ve got a great group of guys, new management, new coaches, so it’s a different feel around here, and we’re just all ready to get going for the season.” When asked about his goals: “Short term, make the team out of spring and go from there…I see myself in the rotation this year…and helping us get a lot of wins,” Keller also telling me he is looking forward to “making all 30 or more starts this year and just staying healthy.” Keller had a rough first couple outings at Spring Training. He was starting to turn it around just before COVID-19 suspended the MLB season. As of March 27, Keller was on the Pirates 25-man roster, meaning he would have likely been with the team for Opening Day. Looking down the road, the 23-year-old has a long journey in Major League Baseball ahead, and a young Pirates team could significantly benefit from Keller’s success. Post Views: 1,092 The following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts Eli Fishman Eli Fishman is a 16-year old college and minor league baseball writer for Double G Sports. He writes about MLB and MLB Draft prospects. Eli has experience broadcasting college baseball and has his own website and YouTube channel where he interviews professional baseball players. Latest posts by Eli Fishman (see all) Yankees Legends, Somerset Patriots Announce New Double-A Affiliation - November 11, 2020 A Recap of Thursday’s Mets Protest, PR Mess - August 29, 2020 MLBN Adds Buck Showalter as Analyst - August 26, 2020 Mike Trout Rookie Card Sells For Record-Breaking $3.9 Million - August 24, 2020 Related TopicsBaseballKellerMiLBMitchMitch KellerMLBpiratesPittsburgh PiratesProspect Click to comment You must be logged in to post a comment Login Leave a Reply Cancel replyYou must be logged in to post a comment. Newsletter Subscription Can't Miss Posts! Women in Sports: NHL Network Host, Jackie Redmond by Nicholas Durst | posted on March 4, 2019 XFL Co-Owner Dany Garcia Talks Business, Serving Others at espnW Women + Sports Summit by Candace Cordelia | posted on October 23, 2020 Women in Sports Interview Series: It’s a sure bet with Philadelphia native, Erin Kate Dolan (VIDEO) by Denise Gonzalez | posted on March 17, 2020 From Paramus High School to CBS Sports, Spero Dedes is making waves in sports broadcasting by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on October 27, 2020 No Shame in Their Game – Female Mixed Martial Artists Use Onlyfans to Make Money by Brandon Berrios | posted on December 4, 2020 More in Baseball You Know I’m Right, Episode 112: New York Jets’ Insider Brian Costello (Audio/Video) On the 112th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 109: The Athletic’s Marc Carig (Audio/Video) On the 109th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 108: WFAN’s Sweeny Murti (Audio/Video) On the 108th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 107: New York Post’s Columnist Mike Vaccaro (Audio/Video) On the 107th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... Talkin Phils With Pete Snyder: Episode 5 (AUDIO) You Know I’m Right, Episode 8: MLB Realignment, XFL, Monday Night Football (Audio)