Brad Keller


Brad Michael Keller is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball.

Career

Keller attended Flowery Branch High School in Flowery Branch, Georgia. He was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the eighth round of the 2013 MLB draft. He had committed to play college baseball at Presbyterian College, but chose to sign with the Diamondbacks rather than attend college.

Arizona Diamondbacks

Keller made his professional debut that year with the Arizona League Diamondbacks and was later promoted to the Missoula Osprey. In 15 games, he posted a 7–3 record and 2.44 ERA. In 2014, he pitched for the Arizona League Diamondbacks, Missoula and Hillsboro Hops, going 6–4 with a 4.31 ERA over 15 games. Keller pitched for the Kane County Cougars in 2015, going 8–9 with a 2.60 ERA over 26 games, the Visalia Rawhide in 2016 where he went 9–7 with a 4.47 ERA in 24 starts, and 2017 with the Jackson Generals, where he posted a 10–9 record and 4.68 ERA in 26 starts.

Kansas City Royals

On December 14, 2017, Keller was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the Rule 5 draft and immediately traded to the Kansas City Royals for cash considerations.
Keller made the 25-man roster for the Royals in 2018, and had his MLB debut on Opening Day, March 29, pitching an inning of scoreless relief against the Chicago White Sox; he struck out the first batter he faced, Adam Engel. He split time between the bullpen and the rotation, leading the team in ERA and tied for first on the team in wins. He struck out 96 batters in innings. On April 19, 2019 Keller received a 5 game suspension by Major League Baseball, which concluded he intentionally threw a pitch that hit Tim Anderson of the Chicago White Sox.
On July 7, 2020, it was announced that Keller had tested positive for COVID-19. 10 days later he was cleared to return to the Royals’ Summer Camp after producing two negative tests at least 24 hours apart.