Felipe Vazquez will remain the Pirates' closer. The rest of their bullpen plan won't be revealed until their newest reliever, Keone Kela, joins the club.
Kela, a 25-year-old right-hander with 24 saves for the Rangers this season, was acquired early Tuesday morning in exchange for left-handed pitcher Taylor Hearn and a player to be named later. Rather than using both Kela and Vazquez in save situations, Neal Huntington told reporters the plan is for Vazquez to close and for Kela to provide Clint Hurdle with another reliever to use in the eighth, seventh or sixth inning.
"I would fully anticipate Felipe would continue to be our closer," Huntington said. "I would fully anticipate, Clint now has three guys that he will feel very comfortable with in pitching in high-leverage situations in the seventh and eighth. Now he has the opportunity to go get somebody he has a ton of confidence in (for) the sixth if need be."
Kela, who is under contract through 2020, will join an already formidable back end. During July, Vazquez, Kyle Crick and Edgar Santana have combined to produce a 0.74 ERA with 51 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings. Vazquez, under contract through 2021, has converted 23 of 27 save opportunities, striking out 63 with 18 walks in 44 2/3 innings. He was the Pirates' lone representative in the All-Star Game earlier this month.
Crick, acquired from the Giants as part of the Andrew McCutchen trade, has a 2.03 ERA and 44 strikeouts to 17 walks. The 25-year-old did not make the opening day roster but has emerged as the setup man since George Kontos was designated for assignment in May. Santana, a 26-year-old rookie, has a 3.02 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 47 2/3 innings, holding lefties to a .217 batting average.
Kela, in his first season as the Rangers' closer, had a 1.14 WHIP and was averaging 10.8 strikeouts per nine innings in his 31 appearances. He has 44 strikeouts to 14 walks, holding right-handed batters to a .125 average. His experience pitching in almost every situation since making his major league debut in April 2015 will provide Hurdle with a few different options.
Kela could be used as the setup man, or the role can be split between him and Crick. If there are runners on base earlier in the game, Hurdle could send Kela or Crick to the mound to face a right-handed batter, or Santana can be deployed against a left-hander. Although Hurdle surely has a plan in place, he declined to reveal the details until Kela arrives in Pittsburgh.
"It opens up possibilities, it definitely does open up possibilities," Hurdle said. "Your depth is now increased. When guys are down, other guys can replace them. You have a guy that’s pitched the ninth, the eighth, seventh, sixth. Whichever leverage situation there’s been involved in a game, he’s been used in it. That gives you an opportunity to use different guys if you’re one run down now instead of only when you’re tied or ahead based on rest and their availability."
With Kela and Chris Archer en route, the Pirates played with only 24 men Tuesday night, and were down one reliever following Tyler Glasnow's trade to the Rays. Glasnow could be replaced by another young starter such as Clay Holmes, or the Pirates can opt to bring up a bullpen arm from Triple-A Indianapolis.
Richard Rodriguez can also now be used in multi-inning situations since he'll no longer be needed for potential high-leverage work in the sixth or seventh innings. Huntington's hope is that the acquisition of Archer will also take some strain off the bullpen, which was taxed in June following a series of short starts by the rotation.
Regardless of roles, the Pirates made a sizable commitment to land Kela. In addition to two prospects, they'll have to give Kela a significant raise when he reaches arbitration this offseason. Yet, Huntington thought it was a worthwhile investment, providing the Pirates with insurance behind Vazquez and another bullpen arm for the playoff chase.
"We just felt really good about Keone Kela and the acquisition cost and the fit in our bullpen," Huntington said. "It gives us another veteran back there to complement Felipe. We have complete confidence in Kyle and Edgar and what they’ve done. It’s a challenge to take Tyler out but an opportunity to just improve what was already a very good back end. The game is shifting that way. The opportunity to add an innings-eating starter like Chris. Two really good adds for us."