Can Keller ace these K's questions ... about his own career?

This story was excerpted from Alex Stumpf’s Pirates Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

PITTSBURGH -- A little over six years ago, a 23-year-old right-hander made his first home start. Mitch Keller was billed as one of the top prospects in the game at that time, and while he had a bumpy road his first few years in the Majors, Keller eventually blossomed into an All-Star, leader and one of the best pitchers to toe the rubber at PNC Park for the Pirates.

On Wednesday, Keller should cement that final point. The right-hander has struck out 382 batters at PNC Park in his career, one shy of Paul Maholm’s stadium record. With that mark almost certainly set to be broken when Keller faces the Cardinals, this reporter drafted a quiz to see how well Keller knows his strikeouts.

1. Who is the first player you struck out at PNC Park?

Keller: “It’s the Tigers, I know that. ... I’m just going to say Miguel Cabrera, because that’d be sick if that was my first one.”

Well, it’s a sick answer. Keller got Cabrera swinging in the first inning of his home debut on June 18, 2019. The future Hall of Fame slugger singled and grounded out in his following at-bats against Keller in the Tigers’ eventual 5-4 win.

2. What’s the most strikeouts you had in a game, and the most strikeouts you had in a game at home?

Keller: “I think the most strikeouts I had in a game was 13 against the Orioles. I don’t know who it was here. Maybe nine here?”

Half credit. Keller did strike out 13 in a win over the O’s at Camden Yards on May 14, 2023, but his PNC Park high-water mark is 10 in beating the Dodgers on April 27, 2023.

3. Which batter(s) have you struck out the most in your career?

Keller used a lifeline and asked for teams of the two players in question. One was described as an ex-Cub that he might see in the Cardinals’ lineup on Wednesday, and the other is now in the National League East after previously playing for the Reds.

Willson Contreras and Nick Castellanos.

Keller batted .500 here, getting Contreras after the hint. Both batters have struck out 10 times in their careers against Keller, with Contreras fanning six times in their two games this season. (His six strikeouts at PNC Park are also the most by Keller against any hitter.) Castellanos did spend part of 2019 with the Cubs and was with the Reds in ‘20 and ‘21, but he has been out of the division for most of Keller’s career. This reporter will admit he wasn’t expecting him to be on the list.

Keller: “I never would have guessed him.”

4. Which team have you had the most strikeouts against?

Keller: “It’s got to be an NL Central team. Probably the Cubs? No. Cardinals? Cardinals are second. Brewers?"

Fourth try’s a charm. It’s the Reds, both at home (48) and in general (83). The Cardinals are second at PNC Park with 33.

Keller: “I feel like I strike out the Cubs a lot, more than anyone else. Dang, that’s crazy.”

5. What pitch do you have the most strikeouts with in your career?

Keller: “Four-seam fastball.”

6. OK, that was a layup. What about which breaking ball?

Keller: “Slider? Or is it sweeper?”

Of course the four-seamer is the primary strikeout pitch, getting 289 with his heater. For the breaking ball, it’s the sweeper, a pitch Keller didn’t start throwing until halfway through the 2022 season. He was adding pitches to his repertoire, most notably the sinker, and it was around that time that his slider started to evolve. It eventually divided into two pitches, the gyro slider and the sweeper, the latter of which has been strike three 152 times in his career.

Keller: “It just naturally started getting a bigger shape throughout the year.”

7. Outside of PNC Park, which ballpark have you had the most strikeouts?

Keller: “Cincinnati?”

I might have set Keller up for this one by saying he struck out the most Reds. It’s actually American Family Field in Milwaukee, where he has 36 strikeouts in his career. Great American Ball Park and Busch Stadium are tied for second with 35 each.

8. Extra credit: Do you have a favorite strikeout?

Keller: “There’s one I always go back to. It’s a sweeper to [Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo]. It moved like 24 inches, which is what I think is the nastiest one ever.”

Keller: “Or one against Minnesota against [Max Kepler], I think. Bases were loaded, it was 3-2 and I threw a sweeper that hit him in the foot. That was sick.”