Every Single 2020 Free Agent the Blue Jays could be Interested in

Keone Kela

Keone Kela is a name that most baseball fans don’t know as he tends to go unrecognized year by year.

Kela has a bullet of an arm as he routinely clocks in the high 90’s with his fastball and has a curveball to go along with it to throw hitters off balance.

In the 2020 season, he only appeared in three games consisting of two innings pitched, but has done well in previous seasons. In 2019, he posted a 2.12 ERA over 32 games with an opponent average of .178.

In his career, he’s 21-11 with a 3.24 ERA in 211 appearances. He has 266 career strikeouts compared to 160 hits given up for an opponent average of .202 in 216.2 innings pitched. He also has 58 holds and 28 saves in 39 chances.

In each season from 2017-2019, he held batters to an opponent average of less than .200.

Signing Kela does come with some risks and concerns though. In the 2019 season, he was involved in multiple benches clearing incidents which resulted in him getting thrown out of the game. He also received a suspension from the league resulting in the brawl.

He’s also known to be a problem in the clubhouse. As a member of the Pirates, he was known to get into arguments with clubhouse staff and sometimes even the coaches.

There’s no doubt that Kela would be a good addition to the back end of the bullpen with his high 90’s heater, but if the Blue Jays want to bring him in, they’ll have to weigh the risk on the potential negative impact he might have on the team.