By Tim Benz
July 30, 2018
So what are the Pirates getting in reliever Keone Kela? And what was Neal Huntington’s mentality in acquiring him?
They are getting a 25-year-old right-handed arm who is pitching in his best stretch of the season. He converted 10 of his last 11 save opportunities with the Rangers. He has allowed only four runs since June 1.
The team now has a right-handed complement to Felipe Vazquez out of the bullpen. In theory, with a one-run lead in the eighth inning, Hurdle can use Vazquez if a big left-handed hitter or two are set to come up. Then he can close with Kela if he so desires in the ninth.
But, like many closers, Vazquez often seems significantly less sharp when he isn’t closing games.
Kela may have to be the one to adjust to that role and simply be a set-up man for Vazquez. If he does that, the Pirates will have taken a big step toward shortening their games as so many managers try to achieve.
Kyle Crick, another right-hander, has six holds since June 15. He has allowed just one run in that time and his ERA is down to 2.03.
Thus, the Pirates not only made their bullpen better. They also may have made their starters better if it’s clear they really only need to go six innings and don’t have to stretch into the seventh. Also, the likes of Richard Rodriguez and Edgar Santana may not be over-leveraged and compromised with too many innings over the last two months of the season.
In terms of the big picture, this acquisition also gives Huntington some roster flexibility. Before the Pirates got hot, there had been some talk that Vazquez may be traded because of the $22 million he is owed over the next four years.
Should the team stumble again between now and the end of that deal, Kela may provide cushion there for Huntington. Kela has two years arbitration remaining before he hits free agency. He is making just $1.2 million this year. The Pirates will have to pay only $400,000 of that the rest of this year.
Huntington, who usually has an allergic reaction to the notion of trading prospects, probably needed a valium after shipping Taylor Hearn out to the Rangers, let alone who the player to be named later is. But this is the kind of bullpen addition decent teams make when they are trying to become real contenders late in a playoff race.
Now, Kela just has to be the pitcher we’ve seen the last eight weeks as opposed to the roller coaster he was before the end of May.
Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@tribweb.com or via Twitter @TimBenzPGH.
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