New Phillies reliever Brad Keller is a TOS success story

As Zack Wheeler works through an offseason of rehabbing from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, the Phillies have a success story of their own in reliever Brad Keller. 

Keller, who signed a two-year, $22 million deal with the Phillies last Thursday, cashed in on an incredible first season as a full-time reliever with the Chicago Cubs. That wasn’t the original plan for the 30-year-old right-hander, who signed a minor league contract with the Cubs last offseason to be a starter. 

The Cubs, who opened last season with enough starting depth, asked Keller to transition to a relief role. He made the taxi squad for the Tokyo Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers and was selected to the roster shortly before Opening Day in the United States. In 68 games as a relief pitcher with the Cubs, Keller posted a 2.07 ERA. 

Keller was open to transitioning back to the rotation for interested teams in free agency, but he has found a home in the bullpen. 

“I had so much fun coming out of the bullpen,” Keller said on a Zoom call with reporters on Monday. “And there was nothing like that last year, just the adrenaline spike every single night. I mean, to be able to enjoy the games, have fun, and then lock it in towards the fourth, fifth inning, and then really try to focus in on what you got to do. I just had so much fun doing it.” 

Keller has been through a lot over the last few years. Doctors reportedly told him that he may have been pitching through TOS symptoms since as early as 2020. He walked 45 batters in just 45 1/3 innings in 2023. A pending free agent, Keller was diagnosed with venous thoracic outlet syndrome that year and underwent decompression surgery after the regular season.  

“It’s wild to think about how I couldn’t wrap my fingers around (the baseball) because my hand was so swollen just from lack of blood flow,” Keller said. “It was kind of crazy.”

He signed a minor league contract with the White Sox in March 2024 and came out averaging in the low 90s on his fastball. 

“I was a little hesitant to see if the surgery worked,” Keller said. 

He pitched in five games with the White Sox before being designated for assignment in May. He went to Boston and regained some velocity while pitching in Triple-A that summer. 

He has earned some stability after being designated for assignment multiple times during the 2024 season. Last season with the Cubs, he transformed into a hard-throwing reliever with a starter’s arsenal. His average fastball velocity jumped from 93.8 mph in 2024 to 97.2 mph.

“I did feel like I worked really hard, I cleaned up a lot of mechanical things,” Keller said. “I started to really focus on using my lower half when pitching, which I’ve always heard. I’m a pretty big guy, but I’ve always thrown using all arm, essentially. And so finally, figuring out how to use my lower half, it helped me out tremendously.” 

Wheeler, unlike Keller, has the benefit of time. Keller admitted that he “rushed” his rehab as a free agent looking to latch on with a new team. The Phillies will take their time with Wheeler, who started playing catch again this month. 

The Phillies are heading into 2026 with some unknowns, the greatest perhaps being Wheeler’s ability to return to his peak self at some point this year. There are growing pains, as evidenced by Keller’s first few months back after surgery. But what matters most is what it looks like in October. 

It’s not a given that Wheeler will bounce back the way Keller did, but there’s proof that there is a path to success following surgery. 

“Last year was my first taste of being in a winning organization,” Keller said. “Getting a chance to pitch in the playoffs, go to the postseason, do all that stuff. I told my agent once you get a taste of that, that’s what you crave every single year.”