One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .468 expected average against them, against .201 on his offspeed pitches.
167 of his fastballs thrown.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Keller's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 92.8 mph, against 79.5 off his changeup.
170 and 71 of them thrown.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Keller's 4-seam fastball averages 97.0 mph, and has touched 99.1.
170 thrown, 31.9% of his pitches.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Keller's sweeper moves 15.7 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
65 thrown, averaging 85.7 mph.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Keller averages 93.0 mph across his arsenal, 91st percentile in the league.
316 pitches in 2026. 91st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 49th in MLB.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Keller throws 34.7% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 41.5% with the bases empty.
72 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 244 with the bases empty.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Keller goes to the sweeper: 20% of his two-strike pitches, against 8.7% the rest of the time.
165 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Keller throws the 4-seam fastball 47.3% of the time against left-handers and 15.8% against right-handers.
260 pitches to right-handers, 273 to left-handers.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Keller's 4-seam fastball carries 14.1 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
170 thrown, averaging 97.0 mph.
He cannot find the zone often enough
Keller works off the plate, with only 39.9% of his pitches in the zone, 21st percentile.
316 pitches in 2026. 21st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 424th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Keller puts 53.9% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 32.8% when he is ahead.
165 located pitches behind, 134 ahead.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Keller is weak: 86.5 mph off the bat on average, 78th percentile.
316 pitches in 2026. 78th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 121st in MLB.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Keller's sweeper spins at 2,741 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
65 thrown in 2026.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Keller puts 41.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 38.4% of his pitches to left-handers.
144 pitches to right-handed hitters, 172 to left-handed hitters.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Keller releases the ball 6.1 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
432 tracked pitches in 2026.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Keller throws a fastball 53% of the time, against 43.3% when he is ahead.
166 pitches behind in the count, 134 ahead.
He lives on one side of the plate
Keller works away from right-handers: his average pitch lands 1.7 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
531 located pitches in 2026.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Keller works with 5 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Sinker and Changeup, and a little else. The 4-seam fastball is 31.9% of everything he throws.
533 classified pitches in 2026.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Keller's stuff spins at 2,362 rpm, 69th percentile in the league.
316 pitches in 2026. 69th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 168th in MLB.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Keller lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.36 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
531 located pitches in 2026.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Keller releases the ball from a three-quarters slot, about 53 degrees above horizontal and 1.3 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
531 tracked release points, averaging 6.2 feet off the ground.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
11.3 mph separates Keller's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 97.0 against 85.7.
170 and 65 of them respectively.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .468 expected average against them, against .201 on his offspeed pitches.
167 of his fastballs thrown.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Keller's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 92.8 mph, against 79.5 off his changeup.
170 and 71 of them thrown.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Keller's 4-seam fastball averages 97.0 mph, and has touched 99.1.
170 thrown, 31.9% of his pitches.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Keller throws the 4-seam fastball 47.3% of the time against left-handers and 15.8% against right-handers.
260 pitches to right-handers, 273 to left-handers.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Keller's sweeper spins at 2,741 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
65 thrown in 2026.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Keller works with 5 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Sinker and Changeup, and a little else. The 4-seam fastball is 31.9% of everything he throws.
533 classified pitches in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
11.3 mph separates Keller's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 97.0 against 85.7.
170 and 65 of them respectively.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Keller's sweeper moves 15.7 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
65 thrown, averaging 85.7 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Keller's 4-seam fastball carries 14.1 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
170 thrown, averaging 97.0 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Keller averages 93.0 mph across his arsenal, 91st percentile in the league.
316 pitches in 2026. 91st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 49th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Keller throws 34.7% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 41.5% with the bases empty.
72 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 244 with the bases empty.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Keller goes to the sweeper: 20% of his two-strike pitches, against 8.7% the rest of the time.
165 two-strike pitches in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Keller puts 53.9% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 32.8% when he is ahead.
165 located pitches behind, 134 ahead.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Keller throws a fastball 53% of the time, against 43.3% when he is ahead.
166 pitches behind in the count, 134 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
Keller works off the plate, with only 39.9% of his pitches in the zone, 21st percentile.
316 pitches in 2026. 21st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 424th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Keller is weak: 86.5 mph off the bat on average, 78th percentile.
316 pitches in 2026. 78th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 121st in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Keller puts 41.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 38.4% of his pitches to left-handers.
144 pitches to right-handed hitters, 172 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Keller releases the ball 6.1 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
432 tracked pitches in 2026.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Keller releases the ball from a three-quarters slot, about 53 degrees above horizontal and 1.3 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
531 tracked release points, averaging 6.2 feet off the ground.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on one side of the plate
Keller works away from right-handers: his average pitch lands 1.7 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
531 located pitches in 2026.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Keller lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.36 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
531 located pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Keller's stuff spins at 2,362 rpm, 69th percentile in the league.
316 pitches in 2026. 69th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 168th in MLB.
Royals
Career team 2018 to 2023