25-year-old right-hander joins Pittsburgh core of young
relievers
Reported to be in pursuit of controllable pitching as the
non-waiver Trade Deadline approached, the Pirates followed through early
Tuesday morning and picked up a big, young arm with the acquisition of Rangers
closer Keone Kela.
Pittsburgh also backed up its stated willingness to deal
high-level prospects, as the Bucs gave up Double-A left-hander Taylor Hearn, their
No. 7 prospect as ranked by MLB Pipeline, along with a player to be named later
in exchange for the 25-year-old Kela. According to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan, the
deal will be completed when the Rangers choose the other player from a list in
August.
Huntington went into buy mode over the past three weeks as
the Pirates surged into postseason contention by winning 15 of 19 games. But
they are 3 1/2 games out of the second National League Wild Card spot, and
Pittsburgh's front office always keeps one eye on the future, so the Pirates
sought upgrades that would complement their current young core. Kela, a
right-hander, fits the description.
Will this be it for the Pirates? On Monday, the eve of
Tuesday's 4 p.m. ET Trade Deadline, they were connected in various reports to
Rays starter Chris Archer,
among other controllable starters.
Kela was one of the more attractive bullpen options
remaining after a flurry of moves was made for relievers in the days leading up
to the Deadline. Reports connected him to the Pirates over the past week, and
they finally came to fruition around 1:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday.
Kela has put together a strong season, converting 24 of 25
save opportunities while posting a 3.44 ERA, 2.97 FIP and 1.15 WHIP. In his
first full year as Texas' closer, Kela has 44 strikeouts and 14 walks with
three home runs allowed in 36 2/3 innings. He owns a 3.45 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in
180 Major League appearances, all of them coming in relief.
Kela's value also comes with his contract. He is making $1.2
million this season, and he remains under club control through the end of the
2020 season. So Kela will join closer Felipe Vazquez and
setup man Kyle Crick at
the back of what's shaping up to be a formidable bullpen for years to come.
The Pirates had to pay a price to get Kela, however. The
23-year-old Hearn was part of their next wave of pitching prospects, a
hard-throwing left-hander acquired from the Nationals along with Vazquez in
exchange for closer Mark Melancon on
July 30, 2016. Hearn was 3-6 with a 3.12 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 107 strikeouts in
104 innings over 19 starts for Double-A Altoona.
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