Still looking for long-term answers, Keller shows short-term growth taken at PNC Park (Pirates)

JUSTIN BERL / GETTY

Mitch Keller throws a pitch in the first inning Sunday against the Giants.

The bad news: Going for the series win Sunday, Mitch Keller ultimately fell short, taking the loss as the Pirates fell 4-1 to the Giants at PNC Park.

The good news?

“I thought it was his best outing of the year,” Derek Shelton said.

Following a fourth inning collapse in his last start Monday, which encapsulated just about everything that has gone wrong for this season, it was a fourth inning bounce back Sunday that defined his outing.

It was almost exactly the same spot. Runners on second and third, nobody out, really not in a position to give up a run. Thin ice.

On Monday, he faltered. Jacob Stallings called for a fastball high and inside to try to get strike three. He left it over the plate and Tucker Barnhart roped a back-breaking double into the notch. Stallings hung his head as he watched it fly.

Fast forward to the fourth inning Sunday. Second and third, nobody out, two strikes to Darin Ruf. Just like he did against Barnhart, Stallings popped up from his crouch to put himself in the best receiving position for that high fastball to Keller’s glove side.

This time, he hit the glove with 95 mph heat and got the whiff:

Just like Monday, Stallings’ reaction told the story. 

“That's really important, because he executed the pitch,” Shelton said on that punchout. “We've seen in previous starts where he hasn't executed, or if he has executed it one time, he hasn't been able to go back to it. Today, we saw him be able to go back to it.”

Keller followed by getting Mauricio Dubón to chase a breaking ball in the dirt for strike three before catching his mound opponent, Alex Wood, looking to end the inning.

And although it's just a bit, the usually stoic Keller showed some emotion leaving the mound:

"It was a huge moment,” Keller said afterwards. “I felt really good to be on the other end of the fourth inning.”

Keller’s outing ended on a sour note, losing Brandon Crawford on a walk after getting ahead 0-2, the deciding tally in his five-plus innings of two-run ball. But for a pitcher who has alternated between poor and good starts, this one was definitely good.

He worked ahead and threw strikes. He controlled the pacing of at-bats. While he walked three, they were long at-bats with lots of pitches in the zone. He paid for those free passes, but the Giants couldn't square him up all day.

He mostly leaned on the fastball, throwing it for 52 of his 92 pitches and getting seven of his eight strikeouts with that pitch. 

To make it work, Shelton said, it’s part establishing the pitch and part executing it, like the Ruf whiff.

“Today, we saw the ball with different life out of it, and definitely different execution,” Shelton said.

But it was the changeup and slider that Shelton said looked better than they had all season. While he may have wrung up batters with the fastball, Keller thought the changeup set some of those pitches up well.

As for the slider, Keller still didn’t get his ideal spin or movement, but had much better location, having most of them fall off the plate and avoid the barrel:

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“I feel like I was getting into really good spots here today and not leaving it over the heart of the zone like I had been in the past,” Keller said.

Keller didn’t have his offspeed or breaking stuff last outing, and the fastball eventually got hit. This time, the heater played up because he had secondary stuff.

Now Keller is back in the same spot he’s been in three other times this year. He bounced back after a bad start.

He’s going to need to build off it. So far, he’s failed to do that each time.

In his radio show on 93.7 The Fan Sunday, Ben Cherington again expressed support for the right-hander. He’s said he believes in what Keller is doing and how he’s trying to be more consistent. The question is how does he do that? There have been plenty of conversations within the organization, and with Keller, to try to figure it out.

“If I had the crystal-clear answer or the key to turn that, I would turn that lock really quickly,” Cherington said.

The answer is somewhere in that fourth inning turnaround. 

MORE FROM THE GAME

• The Pirates' offensive struggles continued against Wood and the Giants Sunday.

Problems with runners in scoring position? Check. They went 1-for-7 in those situations, with the only hit being an Erik González infield hit. The lone run scored on a Ka'ai Tom sacrifice fly.

No power? Check. The Pirates managed eight hits, but they were all singles.

Stranding runners? Check again. They stranded nine runners on base.

Shelton argued it could be worse.

"What would be more concerning to me is if we did not have baserunners, and we didn't have those opportunities," he said. "Now we just have to capitalize on those opportunities, and it's something that we are focusing on, but we have to do a better job in those situations."

• It doesn't help that the Pirates ran themselves out of what was probably their best chance to score.

With Adam Frazier on third and Bryan Reynolds on first in the fifth, Shelton called for a hit-and-run with Stallings at the plate, believing he was going to get a fastball from Wood. Stallings did get the heater, but whiffed.

Buster Posey made a strong throw to second, and while it looked like it would be a bang-bang play, Reynolds instead pulled up and tried to get in a rundown so Frazier could break for the plate. Once Frazier took a couple steps off the bag, second baseman Mauricio Dubón turned and threw a strike to Evan Longoria at third for the out.

"I wasn’t even trying to be over-aggressive," Frazier said, surprised that Dubón even attempted the throw. "Big play in the game. It’s kind of how it went. They did the little things right this series, and it got ‘em a couple extra wins."

• Stallings exited the game in the seventh inning with a left quad contusion after being hit with a foul ball in the seventh inning. He is day-to-day and will be reassessed Monday.

• Spotted Miguel Yajure throwing on the field before Sunday's game. He was formally optioned Saturday for reliever Kyle Keller, but apparently hasn't made the trip back west yet. Class AAA Indianapolis hosted Toledo on Sunday.

• Before the game, Cherington gave some updates for other injured Pirates.

He hopes Colin Moran (groin) and Phillip Evans (hamstring) can ramp up baseball activities soon, and that they could avoid a rehab trip.

The Pirates and Ke'Bryan Hayes (left wrist) are mapping out his rehab trip, which could begin soon. Chad Kuhl (shoulder) should start his rehab trip soon too, and the expectation is he will need multiple starts to build back up.

THE ESSENTIALS

Box Score
Video Highlights
Scoreboard
Standings
Statistics

THE LINEUPS

Shelton's card:

Adam Frazier, 2B
Kevin Newman, SS
Bryan Reynolds, CF
Jacob Stallings, C
Will Craig, 1B
Erik Gonzalez, 3B
Ka'ai Tom, LF
Troy Stokes Jr., RF
Mitch Keller, P

And for Gabe Kapler's Giants:

Mike Tauchman, CF
Mike Yastrzemski, RF
Buster Posey, C
Alex Dickerson, LF
Evan Longoria, 3B
Brandon Crawford, SS
Darin Ruf, 1B
Mauricio Dubon, 2B
Alex Wood, P

THE SCHEDULE

The Pirates will hit the road for six games in St. Louis and Atlanta starting Tuesday. JT Brubaker (3-2, 2.58) will take on John Gant (2-3, 1.83), with first pitch coming at 7:45 p.m. Eastern. Gerard Gilberto will have you covered for the trip.

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