Pittsburgh Review

PITTSBURGH -- Mitch Keller wanted the ball for this one.

Keller’s last start of the first half of the season deviated from his norm, as he lasted only three innings and snapped a streak of 59 straight starts with at least five innings pitched. His previous two turns against the Cardinals were also subpar, resulting in two losses while allowing nine earned runs.

Keller did not pitch in the first series out of the All-Star break because manager Derek Shelton opted to give him some rest after a heavy first-half workload. The decision to push the rotation’s leader to start a pivotal Cardinals series proved right, as Keller spun seven innings of one-run ball before Nick Gonzales drove in the winning run in the eighth inning to beat their National League Central foe at PNC Park on Monday, 2-1.

“Huge team win, especially against the Cardinals,” Keller said. “Every win's great, but especially against a division rival. These are games we need to win.”

Keller needed a diving stop and toss to first by Rowdy Tellez to rob Brendan Donovan of a hit and strand a pair of runners in the fifth inning. For most of the night, he kept the Cardinals off-balance. Prior to that Donovan at-bat, Keller was hit in the hand by a comebacker from Alec Burleson, which required attention from Shelton and assistant athletic trainer Tony Leo. Keller threw each of his six pitches once as warm-up offerings and stayed in the game.

“Probably will be sore tomorrow, but who cares?” Keller said.

All six pitches came into play Monday, but it was particularly his four-seamer that troubled the Cardinals. They managed just 2-for-9 against it with two singles and 10 called strikes. This performance was necessary since Cardinals starter Andre Pallante tossed six innings of one-run ball himself.

In the eighth inning, Bryan Reynolds singled off reliever John King, advanced on a wild pitch and scored on Gonzales’ chopper through the right side of the infield to put the Pirates ahead. Gonzales has shown a knack for clutch situations, leading his team with eight game-winning RBIs this season.

Without Keller’s performance, it likely wouldn’t have been enough.

"I have all confidence in him,” Gonzales said. “Every time he comes out here he's consistent; he does what he needs to do. He's just a pro."

“The game in Chicago was a blip,” Shelton said regarding Keller’s first-half finale. “Seven innings strong today, especially after getting hit in the hand... There were times he didn’t have his best stuff... He made one bad pitch and overall had an outstanding outing.”

This victory came at an important time given how crowded the NL Wild Card picture is with five teams within one game for two playoff spots. That includes both teams involved Monday night: Pirates now trail by just one game for second place in NL Central.

The goal for this clubhouse -- and particularly for Keller -- has always been making playoffs. Games like Monday boost those odds even if it's early yet for standings watching.

"Definitely not trying to look into that,” Keller said about focusing on standings too soon.“We notice where we're at... Just worry about today."