Brad Keller was 'very impressed' by Andrew Bailey; Feels 'revamped' with added velocity and new sweeper
Brad Keller has done everything you could’ve asked of him since he was claimed off waivers by the Red Sox in June.
Keller brings a veteran presence with plenty of MLB service time to a team that is desperate for fresh arms and innings to be thrown down the stretch. It never hurts to have another arm who can start or throw multiple innings when injuries arise, and Keller does just that for you.
“Things have been going amazing,” Keller said of coming over to the Red Sox organization. “I really like it over here and have learned a lot since getting here. I feel like I have gotten better every single time I go out there. I am working on a bunch of things and messing with repertoire and usage of my pitches. I am thinking through a lot more things than I used to and just being a sponge while I am here. I have been around a ton of knowledge working with Andrew Bailey in Boston and Dan DeLucia and Noah Junis here in Worcester. I learned some things over the last few years but feel like I am learning so much more with the Red Sox. My first couple of outings down here I struggled a bit because I was trying to incorporate everything at once and felt a little overwhelmed. I wasn’t really competing and thinking about getting outs. I feel like we made some adjustments and will focus on certain things to execute and have game plans to make it better when I get back up to Boston.”
The 29-year-old has spent time in the Diamondbacks, Royals, and White Sox systems before coming to the Red Sox. He noticed a huge difference when coming to Boston that included pitching coach Andrew Bailey and the approach he gave when Keller came onboard.
“The one thing that stuck out right away was when Andrew Bailey sat me down and gave me a whole presentation on my second day in the organization about what they wanted to see out of me,” Keller said. “They showed me what they wanted to see out of me and what my stuff was and how it graded out. They gave me a plyo routine and things to work on right there. They gave me some pitches to work on between grips, shapes, or velocity. I was very impressed they have a PowerPoint prepped on my second day there. It turned into a very lengthy conversation that they got a feel for me.”
While getting optioned by Worcester, most players are given specific parts of their game to work on while in Triple-A. Keller’s situation was no different and the team gave him three main goals to accomplish while he was down there.
“I have three main goals while down here,” Keller noted. “The first one would be getting my velocity back up. Earlier in my career, I would be around 93-95 and ride up to 97 MPH. This year I have been on the lower end around 90-92 when I was with the White Sox. When I came over to Boston, it would be spurts of higher stuff but mostly lower 90’s. The last couple of outings here we have done a good job of gaining velocity. The next thing they want me to do is to incorporate my sweeper again. I threw my sweeper a lot last year, but it was a tough year for me due to injuries. I need to get a better feel for that pitch and understand usage of that and how to command it and throw it for strikes and for getting swings and misses. The last thing is a first pitch strike. That has always been my kryptonite trying to stay ahead of hitters and stay ahead. I am putting a huge emphasis on that. Those are the three main goals but along with them all is just usage. It is what are my primary goals to righties and lefties and attacking the hitters that way.”
A huge perk for many of the younger guys in Triple-A is the exposure they have to guys with MLB experience sharing a locker room with them. Keller has embraced the veteran role while in Worcester and has had guys like Chase Shugart and Wyatt Olds mention just how much it meant to them to have guys like him there for advice.
“It is a really cool feeling,” Keller said. “I try to pass along as much knowledge as I possibly can. I try to keep it light and keep it fun and pass all the knowledge I can. The younger guys ask me questions and I am always willing to help. It is fun to watch these guys go out here and compete. We have guys here with a lot of good stuff and they are all so young. It was fun to watch a guy like Shugart do his thing in his debut. We had the game up in the bullpen and were all excited for him when he got in.”
It really isn’t a matter of if Keller will be back up in the Boston bullpen, but more of when he would be back up there. The Red Sox bullpen has guys that could benefit from some time off and Keller would be a valuable arm to be able to make that happen on some nights.
“Just getting innings out of the bullpen,” Keller said of how he wants to help the big league club. “When I go up there, I am usually the long guy out of the bullpen. I just want to go up there and help the team win. Usually in that role, you are giving the pitching staff a break. I just want to be that guy that is able to do that and go eat some innings and pass it on to the next guy.”
