Pirates' Mitch Keller: Seven strong innings in second win
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Keller (2-1) notched the win Sunday against the Rays, allowing two runs on five hits and no walks in seven innings. He struck out five.
It was perhaps a season-best performance by the right-hander, who recorded season-high figures in innings and strikeouts. Keller has done a fine job of providing length for the Pirates so far in 2026, tossing at least six innings in four of his five starts. He'll bring a strong 2.79 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 19:9 K:BB over his first 29 frames into his next outing, which is currently projected to come against the division-rival Brewers.
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Rays' Jake Fraley: Taking seat Sunday
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Fraley is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Even with the Rays facing right-hander Mitch Keller in the series finale, Fraley will cede his spot in right field to Jonny DeLuca. Fraley has recorded hits in five of his last six starts but is still holding down a pedestrian .227/.292/.364 slash line over 48 plate appearances.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Tagged for five runs in loss
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Keller (1-1) took the loss Monday against the Nationals, allowing five runs on six hits and four walks with three strikeouts across four innings.
Keller had turned in three straight six-inning quality starts to begin the season, so Tuesday was his first hiccup of the 2026 campaign. The Nationals attacked Keller early and often in this one, as the first five batters of the game reached base to push across three runs. CJ Abrams then swatted a solo home run off Keller in the third frame. Keller generated just seven whiffs on 90 pitches and walked four batters for the second time in four starts. The right-hander now owns a 2.86 ERA and 14:9 K:BB across 22 innings. He's slated to face the Rays at home Sunday in his next start.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Blanks Friars in no-decision
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Keller didn't factor into the decision in Wednesday's 8-2 loss to the Padres, allowing three hits and a walk over six scoreless innings. He struck out four.
The veteran right-hander was masterful over 75 pitches (49 strikes), but manager Don Kelly elected to lift Keller to begin the seventh inning in a scoreless tie and watched his bullpen immediately implode. Keller has begun the season with three straight quality starts but has won only one of them, delivering a 1.00 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 11:5 K:BB through 18 innings. He'll look for more run support in his next trip to the mound, which is set to come at home early next week against the Nationals.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Goes six scoreless in no-decision
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Keller did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 4-2 extra-innings loss to the Mets, allowing three hits and no walks with three strikeouts over six scoreless innings.
Keller was extremely efficient, needing just 77 pitches to blank the Mets over six innings. It was an encouraging outing for the 29-year-old, who has logged 175-plus frames in each of his past three seasons. He lines up for a home matchup against the Orioles next weekend.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Makes adjustment to changeup
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Keller adjusted the grip on his changeup during the offseason, Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.
Keller throws a wide range of pitches and consistently tinkers with his offerings, though his changeup has never been a major part of his arsenal. It's unclear exactly how he changed the pitch, but he threw it six times in his spring debut Sunday against the Rays -- all against lefties. Keller reported feeling comfortable with the pitch, per Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, so it could be a more prominent part of Keller's game plan in 2026.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Labors in no-decision
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Keller didn't factor into the decision Friday against Atlanta, allowing one run on three hits and five walks in 3.2 innings. He struck out six.
Keller lacked control in his last start of the campaign, issuing his most walks of the year in his shortest outing since Aug. 19. In fact, the right-hander lent more free passes Friday than he did in his prior five appearances combined. Keller will be entering the third season of his five-year contract with the Pirates in 2026, and he remained a capable -- if unspectacular -- major-league starter in 2025. Over 176.1 innings, he posted a 4.19 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 150:51 K:BB.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Serves up two homers in loss
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Keller (6-15) allowed four earned runs on four hits and a walk while striking out four across five innings to take the loss Friday against the A's.
Keller had a smooth start to the outing, as he retired the first nine batters he faced. However, he allowed a solo home run in the fourth inning, followed by a three-run shot a frame later to ruin his day. Keller has now allowed at least one home run in six straight starts and has a 5.87 ERA paired with a 1.45 WHIP across 53.2 innings since the All-Star break.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Out-dueled by Woodruff
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Keller (6-14) took the loss Saturday, allowing two runs on five hits over 6.1 innings as the Pirates were downed 4-1 by the Brewers. He struck out four without walking a batter.
It was arguably Keller's best performance since the All-Star break, with a two-run homer by Jake Bauers in the fourth inning being the only blemish on his line, but the right-hander had no margin for error with Brandon Woodruff firing goose eggs over six innings for Milwaukee. The quality start was Keller's 17th of the season, one off his career high, but only two of them have come in seven outings since the beginning of August -- a stretch in which he's stumbled to a 5.86 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 36:11 K:BB through 35.1 innings. He'll try to build on this effort in his next trip to the mound, which is scheduled to come on the road next weekend against the Nationals.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Falls to Boston
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Keller (6-13) took the loss Sunday against the Red Sox, allowing four runs (none earned) on four hits and a walk across five innings. He struck out seven.
After blanking the Red Sox through four innings, Keller fell victim to some poor defense behind him in the fifth -- Romy Gonzalez reached via error to start the frame before Jarren Duran legged out a three-run, inside-the-park home run with two outs. While he wasn't charged with an earned run Sunday, Keller has been shaky of late, posting a 7.59 ERA across seven starts coming into the day. Overall, the right-hander sports a 4.21 ERA with a 1.28 WHIP and 132:44 K:BB across 28 starts (156 innings) this season.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Roughed up again Tuesday
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Keller (5-12) took the loss Tuesday against the Blue Jays, allowing five runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four in 3.1 innings.
Keller struggled out of the gates, allowing three runs in the opening frame while needing 33 pitches to complete the inning. George Springer then punished him in the second with a two-run blast to put the Pirates in a quick 5-0 hole. In six starts since the All-Star break, Keller owns an 8.31 ERA and 2.08 WHIP and has completed six frames only once. He lines up for a road start against the Cardinals to begin next week.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Can't slow down Brew Crew
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Keller (5-11) took the loss Wednesday, surrendering six runs on eight hits and two walks over four innings as the Pirates were downed 12-5 by the Brewers. He struck out five.
The right-hander couldn't stop Milwaukee from winning its 12th straight game, getting tagged for more than five runs for the first time since June 5 and getting handed his first loss since June 21. Since the latter outing, Keller has posted a 4.34 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 39:15 K:BB through 47.2 innings over nine starts. He'll look to rebound in his next trip to the mound, which is scheduled to come at home early next week against the Blue Jays.
Keller did not factor into the decision in Friday's 3-2 win over the Reds, allowing two runs on six hits and three walks with three strikeouts over 5.2 innings.
Keller departed an out shy of a quality start after allowing two baserunners in the sixth inning, one of whom came around to score. The 29-year-old threw just 56 of 97 pitches for strikes with only six whiffs, but the two earned runs marked his lowest total in four starts since the All-Star break. He'll carry a 3.86 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 107:37 K:BB across 137.2 innings into a road matchup with the Brewers next week.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Completes just two frames Monday
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Keller allowed three runs on five hits and three walks while striking out three batters over two innings in a no-decision against San Francisco on Monday.
It was a slog from the start for Keller, who allowed three baserunners and one run in the first inning. The Giants tagged him for two more runs in the second, though Keller at least managed to avoid a disastrous frame by striking out two batters with the bases loaded. However, the right-hander finished that inning at 73 pitches -- just 42 of which were strikes -- and didn't return for the third. This was Keller's shortest outing of the campaign and the first time in 20 starts that he's failed to complete five frames. Pittsburgh was able to pull out the win, however, so Keller remains without a loss on his record since June 21.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Sharp in quality start
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Keller didn't factor into the decision in Sunday's 2-1 win against the Twins, allowing one run on four hits over six innings while recording three strikeouts.
Keller turned in another strong outing Sunday, with the only damage coming on a Byron Buxton RBI double in the fourth inning. The right-hander, who was pulled after 83 pitches, has now allowed three earned runs or fewer in seven consecutive starts, compiling a 2.32 ERA with 31 strikeouts and seven walks over 42.2 innings during that stretch. Keller looks locked in heading into the All-Star break, continuing to offer dependable ratios and consistently eating up innings for the non-contending Pirates.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Blanks Cards across seven frames
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Keller (3-10) earned the win against the Cardinals on Wednesday, allowing five hits and one walk while striking out seven batters in seven scoreless innings.
Keller got off to a shaky start after letting the first three batters he faced on base, but he was able to escape the first frame unscathed. He was lights out after giving up two more baserunners in the third, retiring the last 11 batters he faced before the bullpen came in to complete the shutout and extend the Pittsburgh pitching staff's scoreless streak to 31 innings, per ESPN. Keller has won each of his last two outings after failing to record a win across his previous 15 starts, and he now has a 3.64 ERA and 1.19 WHIP across 106.1 innings this season. He's slated to start against the Royals on the road next week.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Captures second win of 2025
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Keller (2-10) earned the win against the Mets on Friday, allowing one run on five hits and one walk while striking out four across 5.1 innings.
Keller allowed one baserunner or zero in each of the first five innings he pitched, with his lone blemish coming in the fourth, when he yielded a solo home run to Juan Soto. Keller has given up three earned runs or fewer in 10 of his last 11 starts, but he was finally able to get run support from the Pirates batters and came away with his first win since March 28. Keller now has a 3.90 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 77:25 K:BB across 99.1 innings this season. He'll look for his third win in his next start, tentatively slated for next week at home against the Cardinals.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Another quality start
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Keller didn't factor into the decision in Sunday's extra-inning loss to the Cubs, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks over six innings. He struck out three.
Keller owns a middling 4.08 ERA on the season, but he's been an extremely reliable arm on the front end of Pittsburgh's rotation. He's had two blow-up starts, allowing a combined 13 earned runs in those outings, and owns a 3.10 ERA outside of those two appearances. His consistency is shown in his 11 quality starts -- tied for the most in baseball. However, a lack of run support has made Keller's campaign frustrating, as the 29-year-old has posted a 1-9 record through 14 outings. In 2024, his ninth loss came Sept. 1. He's tentatively scheduled to face the Rangers his next time out.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Solid showing in no-decision
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Keller did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing one run on seven hits and no walks over six innings against the Brewers. He struck out seven.
He gave up his fair share of base hits, but Caleb Durbin's second-inning single was the only one that plated a run Saturday. Keller has been particularly sharp of late, posting a 1.89 ERA and a 20:2 K:BB across his past three starts. Aside from a rough outing against the Yankees on April 4, when he allowed seven runs over 3.2 innings, the 29-year-old has been a steady presence on the mound for the Pirates this season. After Saturday's start, Keller now sports a 3.66 ERA and 1.30 WHIP.
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Pirates' Mitch Keller: Gets little help again in loss
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Keller (1-5) took the loss Tuesday as the Pirates fell 2-1 to the Mets, giving up two runs on five hits and a walk over seven innings. He struck out eight.
The strikeouts were a season high for Keller, who delivered his second straight quality start and sixth of the campaign on 96 pitches (65 strikes), including 32 called or swinging strikes. The right-hander hasn't gotten into the win column since March 28 due to consistently poor offensive support -- the Bucs have scored only 15 runs combined in his last seven trips to the mound, a stretch in which he's posted a 3.40 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 35:11 K:BB over 42.1 innings. Keller lines up to make his next start at home early next week against the Reds.
