Dallas Keuchel’s Patience Paid Off

Dallas Keuchel said that the Minnesota Twins didn’t have to sell him too hard on signing with them. They had a full rotation but have a Triple-A team in a big-league city. He liked what Derek Falvey and Thad Levine had done in developing pitchers. And the depth was thin behind Louie Varland. The 35-year-old former Cy Young winner saw a pathway back to the minors.

But Keuchel had to wait. And wait, and wait. He signed with the Twins on June 22 with a July 22 opt-out. He extended his opt-out to the August 1 trade deadline, though, and made six minor-league starts before he got his big-league opportunity on Sunday. The Twins had 48 hours to decide on Keuchel after he opted out at the trade deadline. It turns out that Joe Ryan wasn’t forthcoming about his groin injury, Minnesota needed a pitcher, and Keuchel was right there waiting.

“This is a good situation,” Keuchel said after arriving in Minnesota’s clubhouse. “I know a lot of these guys from competing against them. It’s tough to not like the Twins and the situation that they have moving forward. It’s going to be a good fit.”

Keuchel had to wait an hour and ten minutes before his scheduled 1:10 pm start because of a rain delay. Still, he pitched well. He went five innings, gave up eight hits, one run, and walked two. Keuchel’s sinker sat at 87-88 mph and never hit 90, but he worked the corners and induced outs.

“I was happy with it,” Keuchel said of his first start, admitting he had some nerves.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t unhappy a little bit, just because…nine days off kinda felt like forever. But I knew I was gonna have some extra adrenaline, so I was trying to tone it down a little bit. But at the same time, I’d like to be a little more crisp with two strikes or kinda put away situations.

I know we got some ground balls. But at the same time, there were gonna be some punch-outs needed in certain situations moving forward, rather than trying to rely on a double-play early.

Carlos Correa was a familiar face behind Keuchel. They embraced when Keuchel entered the clubhouse, and Keuchel said he felt comfortable inducing ground balls with Correa behind him. In turn, Correa felt Keuchel looked like the pitcher he got to know in Houston.

“Man, he looked really good,” said Correa. “[Keuchel] was throwing strikes. He was pounding the zone. He was staying down. I told him, ‘I’m so happy you’re here. I finally have a ground-ball pitcher.’ I got my ground balls in. It was a good day.”

Keuchel said he didn’t have much to prove after his final start in St. Paul. Still, he felt rushed last year when he had a 9.20 ERA with the Chicago White Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Texas Rangers. Keuchel probably would have liked a big-league promotion earlier, and his opt-out forced the Twins to make a decision on him. But the timing ultimately worked out.

Yeah, I mean, kinda just the journey last year, and for the first time in my career, I really was pushing too hard. And that included when I signed with the Rangers, I really was pushing just because I was doing well to get back up to the big leagues.

But I knew it was gonna be a process this time around. And I wasn’t trying to elevate or push anything forward. I knew my time would come when it was ready, and I was ready. I didn’t want to take the opt-out, but it just kinda was there for me for a reason. But at the same time, I knew I was gonna be in a good position just because of how hard I worked and to physically get back to where I want it to be and mentally.

At this stage of his career, Keuchel is probably a five-and-dive pitcher, not unlike what Chris Archer and Dylan Bundy were in Minnesota. Like Keuchel, Archer was a two-time All-Star. Bundy was once one of the most hyped pitching prospects in baseball. The difference is that Keuchel was a mid-season signing to bolster the pitching depth. The Twins had signed Archer and Bundy at the start of the season to fill out their rotation.

Varland is the only pitcher who Keuchel is potentially blocking. Varland, who grew up in North St. Paul and attended Concordia, had a 3.51 ERA after pitching seven innings in Houston on May 31. However, he gave up five home runs in his next three starts, and the Twins demoted him to Triple-A. He has a 5.30 ERA in St. Paul, and his 1.357 WHIP and 14 home runs given up in ten starts indicate he’s still working through some stuff. By promoting Keuchel, Minnesota didn’t have to rush Varland back to the majors.

Keuchel isn’t the Cy Young pitcher he was in Houston. But he keeps the ball on the ground and should reliably give the Twins five innings. He’s the kind of pitcher they need until Ryan returns from injury or Varland is ready for a promotion. Minnesota created a favorable situation for Keuchel. As a reward, they got a former Cy Young winner to step in when they needed some pitching depth.