Mitch Keller will make his first start for the Pittsburgh Pirates in six weeks on Monday, when the right-hander pitches in the second game of a doubleheader at the Cincinnati Reds.
Keller (1-1, 3.52 ERA) will face the Reds’ Anthony DeSclafani (1-2, 7.20), after Pirates right-hander Cody Ponce (1-1, 3.46) faces Trevor Bauer (4-3, 1.74) in the first game at Great American Ball Park.
Keller has been on the 10-day injured list since Aug. 2, a day after he injured his left oblique in the third inning of a 5-4 loss at the Chicago Cubs. Keller pitched only 7 2/3 innings this season, and is 2-6 with a 6.63 ERA and 1.78 WHIP in 13 career starts.
Keller tossed 43 pitches in three innings of live batting practice on Wednesday at PNC Park, so the Pirates plan to bring him along slowly. They did the same with Joe Musgrove when he returned from the IL.
“I’m excited to have him back,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said of Keller. “It’s not going to be fully built up. It’s good to get him back. We need to get him innings. It’s important to get him innings through the rest of the year, with the time he’s missed going into 2021. Getting him back on the mound is important to us.”
