The Pittsburgh Pirates have placed pitcher Mitch Keller on the disabled list, ten days after he left his last start after just one inning of work. It was announced that night that he was pulled from the game with back tightness.
Reports from the Pirates over last weekend said that Keller was feeling much better and was throwing off flat ground. They also said he wasn’t expected to miss much time. The minor league disabled list is just seven days and the move was made retroactive to May 24th, so he could return in five days, although it’s likely that it will be at least a little longer than that. Keller is currently at Pirate City and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him get a start in Extended Spring Training first before he returns to the Bradenton Marauders. It appears the back injury was minor and they are just being cautious with his return.
Keller has a 2.93 ERA, an 0.93 WHIP and 39 strikeouts in 40 innings this season. RF/C Kevin Krause took Keller’s place on the active roster. He has been out since May 6th with a hamstring injury. Krause started in right field on Friday night.