ESPN doubles down on Mitch Keller trade buzz with new list of suitors

Two things are dominating Pittsburgh Pirates land right now. The first pressing issue is how Ben Cherington will spend his $30-$40 million windfall to improve the team. That one is fresh. The second is when, to where, and for what will the Pirates deal Mitch Keller?

For a while, it had begun to feel like the answers to the second question were never, nowhere, and for nothing, as the field for Keller's services seemed to shrink. However, an argument can be made that the Sonny Gray and Dylan Cease dominoes had no impact on Keller (and perhaps not even the Johan Oviedo trade will affect him, given their depth overload). Cease and Gray are on different planes. In the case of Gray, as a one-year commitment, he offers something very different than Keller does to a prospective trade partner.

The ideal Keller destination is a club that wants the long-term security he brings alongside the consistency and ability to eat innings. To that end, ESPN is stoking the fire by predicting a 60% chance of a trade, while coming up with a lengthy list of new suitors.

ESPN's take on prospective Mitch Keller suitors shows the Pirates right-hander's market might be gaining steam

ESPN's dynamic duo of Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel came up with the following list of potential Keller landing spots: The Texas Rangers, the Houston Astros, the Los Angeles Angels, the Athletics, and the New York Mets.

There you have five clubs, all of which have some desire to contend in 2025. The Rangers need stability in their rotation with Merrill Kelly, Tyler Mahle, and Patrick Corbin all hitting free agency. The Astros' rotation is in dire straits aside from Hunter Brown. The Angels have been a pitching black hole for as long as anyone can remember. The Athletics' impressive collection of young bats was held back dramatically by a lack of quality arms. And finally, the Mets' starters face all sorts of uncertainty.

Passan and McDaniel also speculate that, rather than prospects, the return for Keller might be a bat of equivalent salary, making such a swap an intriguing way to deal from a strength to improve a flaw on the major league roster. In conjunction with the spending that is expected to take place to further improve the offense, we could really be cooking.

Such a lengthy and diverse list of Keller suitors is a positive development and a great sign that a deal will likely happen, and as a result, the Pirates could very well be in a better position for 2026 than they currently are with Keller on the roster.