The Philadelphia Phillies' recent history of being a playoff team drew Brad Keller to sign with the organization.
If you look across baseball, just about every team, contending or rebuilding, needs more pitching depth out of their rotation and the bullpen. That gives free agent arms just about their pick to sign wherever they want to.
As Bread Keller mulled his options, he ultimately decided to sign a two-year deal with the Philadelphia Phillies.
The right-hander will fit seamlessly into a middle relief role with plenty of opportunities to take the mound in high-leverage situations. It wasn’t just that fit that brought Keller to Philly; he recently told reporters that he wants to be a part of a winning team and organization.
“Last year was my first taste of, like, really winning, being in a winning organization and, getting a chance to pitch in the playoffs, go to the postseason, do all that stuff,” explained Keller.
“I told my agent, going through this whole process is like, you know, kind of once you get a taste of that, it's like, that's once you crave every single year. It's like, it was such an awesome experience, and it's like, that's something that I want to do year in and year out.”
Keller made his MLB debut in 2018 with the Royals as a starter and pitched the next six years for the American League Central organization. Then, he signed with the Chicago White Sox in 2024, only to be traded to the Boston Red Sox halfway through the season.
During the first seven years of his career, Keller never got an opportunity to pitch in the playoffs. Finally, Keller appeared in his first playoff game with the Chicago Cubs in 2025 and was one of their key pieces in advancing to the ALDS.
In five postseason games last season, Keller logged a 1.59 ERA, 0.706 WHIP, and two saves in 5.2 innings.
After Keller got a taste of that playoff adrenaline, he knew he wanted more of it with whatever team he signed with, and the Phillies’ history made signing with the organization an easy decision.
“I feel like Philly really gives a good opportunity for that. Obviously, the track record speaks for itself. It's like always a team that's competitive on the field and a lot of good players out there and seems to be in the playoffs every year. So that was definitely very attractive for me.”