Pittsburgh Pirates: Three likely trade candidates at the deadline
By Nick Stevens
Keone Kela is back for the Pittsburgh Pirates and ready to take over the role of closer.
When Keone Kela takes the mound this weekend, it will mark his 2020 season debut after the Pittsburgh Pirates reliever missed summer camp due to a positive COVID-19 test. Regardless, the 27-year-old hard-throwing reliever may be the biggest trade chip on this Pittsburgh roster.
It’s hard to overlook the off the field issues when talking about Kela, but teams that need bullpen help (and there are a lot of them), may be willing to overlook those issues. Kela is a free agent after this season so if the clubhouse fit isn’t there, he’s gone in just a few weeks.
When Kela is healthy, he’s a high-quality late-inning reliever. In five major league seasons, Kela owns a 3.23 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and has averaged more than 10 K/9 IP in each season. His 27.7% strikeout rate in 2019 was the lowest strikeout rate of his big league career.
Injuries limited him to just 29 innings last season, but Kela is now fully healthy and ready to take over as the Pirates closer now that he’s tested negative for COVID-19 and worked his way back onto the roster.
The Phillies, Astros, and Nationals are three times that immediately come to mind as potential suitors. Philadelphia’s bullpen currently owns an astronomical 9.63 ERA (Do we have to say that leads the league? It does.), while the Astros are now without Robert Osuna and are approaching a dozen rookie pitchers used this season, and the Nationals are also dealing with a handful of injuries and struggling bullpen arms.