PITTSBURGH,PA STATE – APRIL 21: Mitch Keller pitches for the Pittsburgh Pirates’ No. 23 during the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds on April 21, 2023 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
Over the past 15 months, the Pittsburgh Pirates have signed third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes and outfielder Brian Reynolds to two of the richest contracts in franchise history contract.
They shouldn’t have stopped here.
Right-hander Mitch Keller is one of the 2023 breakout players with a 2.38 ERA and strikeouts in nine starts The walk rate is 69/14. He has struck out at least eight in each of his past four starts, including 13 in seven innings against the Baltimore Orioles.
Kyler, 27, has negotiated contract extension with Buccaneers, as Bob Nandenger of USA TODAY as first reported. Negotiations have been going on for some time, but no deal is believed to have been reached yet.
MLB Rumors: Why Pirates Need Mitch Keller to Sign Extension
Still, Buccaneers try to extend Kyler’s motivation when he still has two years left in arbitration Says a lot about how the team thinks of him and who he can be. He achieved stellar results, finally realizing the potential that many lead experts predicted years ago when he was the organization’s top lead.
As evidenced by Reynolds’ extension, the Buccaneers aren’t averse to long-term extensions during the season. Who can blame them? The longer the Buccaneers wait to re-sign Keller, the more expensive he becomes. For a team that has historically spent the least amount of money, aggressively re-signing Kyler would make a lot of sense.
It remains to be seen whether the Buccaneers and Kyler ultimately agree to a contract extension this season. But re-signing him now, rather than waiting, could help cement their top rotation for years to come and avoid another Gerrit Cole situation.
