'He's an All-Star': Pirates push for pitcher Mitch Keller to make NL team for Midsummer Classic

After Mitch Keller outdueled former Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell on Wednesday night, there was a buzz around the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse that Keller had proved a point to the baseball world.

If there were any questions of whether he was deserving of being selected to his first All-Star Game, Keller had answered them by holding the San Diego Padres and their loaded lineup to one run.

“Absolutely. Even before that outing, he was an All-Star,” Pirates left-hander Rich Hill said. “He’s been the anchor of this staff this entire season. He’s thrown the ball incredible. The work he’s put in, the stuff everybody doesn’t see, has been really consistent and very impressive.”

When the All-Star rosters are announced at 5:30 p.m. Sunday for the July 11 Midsummer Classic at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Keller is expected to earn a spot on the National League roster.

The 27-year-old right-hander ranks second in the National League in strikeouts (118), third in innings pitched (105), tied for third in wins (nine), fifth in WHIP (1.10), seventh in batting average against (.223) and eighth in ERA (3.34) in 17 starts this season. Keller also ranks in the top five in the majors in wins, strikeouts and innings.

“I think Mitch Keller has been on fire this year,” said Pirates closer David Bednar, who earned his first All-Star appearance last year. “He’s been a lot of fun to watch, so I think he should certainly punch his ticket to Seattle.”

Keller did his best to sidestep the topic Thursday, even after receiving public endorsements from Pirates manager Derek Shelton, who was named to Rob Thomson’s NL All-Star coaching staff, and several prominent teammates.

Keller’s road to such recognition has been rocky at times. After rising through the minor leagues as the Pirates’ top pitching prospect, Keller endured several rough seasons in his first three years in the majors. He was demoted to Triple-A Indianapolis in 2021 and bumped to the bullpen for a few games last season before returning to the rotation and leading the Pirates in games started and innings pitched.

“I think it would be unbelievable with everything he has gone through over the last couple years,” Shelton said. “The grinding, the changing and how much he matured. I think I would be more emotional for that than myself going.”

Keller, for one, is doing his best to block out All-Star talk, treating any such discussion as a distraction while appreciating that he has earned the respect of his teammates as the anchor of the starting rotation and a stopper of losing streaks.

“Honestly, I just go out there and compete and try not to think about All-Stars and all that good stuff,” Keller said. “As soon as you start thinking about that and have that in the back of your mind as you’re trying to execute, stuff is going to go haywire.

“Definitely, I want to be recognized in the clubhouse as that. Outside noise doesn’t matter to me. I want to be well-received in here, be a good teammate and a good competitor. I want them to have confidence in me every time I go out there.”

That’s precisely how the Pirates view Keller, who has made 11 quality starts this season, including a shutout of the Colorado Rockies on May 8 at PNC Park.

“I’d put Mitch against anyone in the league right now,” Pirates outfielder Connor Joe said. “To see him put it all together and go out there with confidence gives us confidence to scrap out some runs for this guy because he’s so valuable to us. If he’s surprising people around the league, I’d be shocked. This is him. He’s an All-Star. He’s put up an All-Star first half, and I’m really proud of him and really happy for him.”

Pirates designated hitter Andrew McCutchen, a five-time All-Star, believes Keller has showcased his talent all season. McCutchen said that was especially true with how Keller recovered from a rough start Wednesday, throwing 57 pitches in the first two innings, to hold the Padres to one run on four hits and two walks while striking out five in a 7-1 win.

“If he hasn’t opened anyone’s eyes yet, you’d think a game like (Wednesday) would,” McCutchen said. “If anything, I would hope it boosts his confidence so that he feels like he belongs, so that he feels like what he’s done in the first half of the season is something you want to continue to keep doing. It’s not like you did it, made the All-Star Game and now you can put your feet up. Hopefully, that propels him into feeling like he can sustain it and he can thrive and keep going and doing it and have an even better second half.”