In the continued search for bullpen help, the Phillies have reportedly settled on Brad Keller as the best option to provide reinforcement.
Once a starter in the Royals’ system, Keller went to the relief role last year with the Cubs where he flourished. He saw jumps in all of the good stats one wants to see from a reliever, posting a career high 27.2% strikeout rate, suppressing home runs (0.52
HR/9) and ending his season with a 2.07 ERA (2.93 FIP).
Looking at his under the hood numbers and there is a lot of red there – a LOT of red. Career highs in fastball velo, exit velo allowed, hard hit rate, groundball rate, it’s all the stuff one wants from a relief arm. Now, Caleb Cotham and company will be able to get their hands on him and try to tinker around the edges to see if there is another gear to his game.
