Keller finds working rhythm in win over A's

OAKLAND -- Brad Keller didn’t notice the zero in the A’s hit column until he ran out to the mound in the bottom of the sixth inning on Saturday, and even when that zero turned to one, Keller was more focused on the run column -- and making sure that stayed as a zero.

Mission accomplished. Keller shoved for seven scoreless innings in the Royals’ 2-0 win at the Coliseum. Kansas City’s third straight win also clinched its first series win since taking two of three from the Rockies in the middle of May.

Keller held Oakland hitless through 5 2/3 innings, when Jonah Bride laced a double to the left-field wall, just out of reach of Andrew Benintendi’s glove.

"I didn’t even notice it was happening until going out there for that inning,” Keller said. “I didn’t put too much thought into it. I was just trying to get deep in the ballgame, keep putting up zeros. Their starter [Cole Irvin] was putting up zeros, so just try to match him as much as I could.”

The Royals were held scoreless until the top of the seventh, when Michael A. Taylor’s triple to left field was misplayed by Seth Brown. Ryan O’Hearn lined a double down the right-field line for a 1-0 lead and O’Hearn’s Major League-leading seventh pinch-hit of the year. The first baseman/outfielder is hitting .114 (4-for-35) as a starter this year, compared to .438 (7-for-16) in 19 games as a substitute.

O’Hearn didn’t take a swing in the cage prior to his at-bat. The visitor’s batting cage is behind center field, so he couldn’t get out there during the game. And when he arrived at the Coliseum on Saturday morning, there were about 10 players lined up to hit before him in the small cage.

“So I was just like, ‘I’m going to go in cold today,’” O’Hearn said, shrugging. “Took some swings before I got in the box, back cracked a few times to loosen up, and then I said, ‘Here we go. It’s a fist fight. I’m going to try to put the ball in play, get the run in.’ Baseball is like that sometimes. Not the prettiest way to get it done, but I’ll take it every time.”

One swing, one hit and one RBI gave Keller the win he deserved. The right-hander was coming off his worst start of the season, when he was charged with five runs on seven hits and one walk in a season-low 1 2/3 innings. He also had been mired in a slump, posting a 7.23 ERA in his seven previous starts.

Against the A’s, Keller allowed one hit with three walks and six strikeouts.

“As the game went on, he had a zero, and we had a zero in our run column as well,” Whit Merrifield said. “So we knew we needed to do something to help him out a little bit.”

This past week, Keller watched video with pitching coach Cal Eldred and determined his delivery tempo was too slow, and it wasn’t allowing Keller to drive the ball down the hill or command his fastball.

That was a noticeable difference on Saturday, and Keller lived in all four quadrants of the zone -- while staying out of the middle.

“He’s trusting the movement,” manager Mike Matheny said. “We talk about that a lot, making quality pitches, and not throwing it in the heart of the plate. It’s using the movement he had, both ways. Changeup was good, hard and late. Slider was swing and miss. Kept the ball on the ground and let guys make plays for him.”

When Keller faced trouble in the sixth, walking two batters after Bride’s double, Eldred made a mound visit.

“He was like, ’Hey, we need to speed it up a little bit.’ He said I had slowed down a little bit with the tempo,” Keller said. “That cue allowed me to get back on pace and finish the inning.”

Keller established his fastball early in several at-bats, something he hasn’t been able to do of late. Then, he worked in his slider and changeup when needed. When Keller is at his best, he’s a ground-ball pitcher. Too many times over the past month, he relied on his slider just as much, if not more, as his fastball.

“I’ve never been that guy,” Keller said. “I’ve always been a fastball pitcher first. Let’s go back to establishing the fastball, whether it’s in or away. Start with the fastball. And then build off that.”

“That’s his game,” Matheny added. “That just shows you the kind of movement he’s got. You could see the uncomfortable at-bats. He was rushing it in there, keeping them honest on both sides of the plate to where they couldn’t sit on any one thing. And then he still had the slider and changeup when he needed it.”