Owen Kellington: Deeper Arsenal Developing As Season Winds Down

The development of another secondary pitch has led to some late season success for Owen Kellington.

When you go back and talk about the 2021 draft class for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Owen Kellington may not be one of the first names that comes up in the conversation.

That isn’t always an indictment on him, as the Pirates held the first overall pick (Henry Davis), and then took some of the more highly touted prep players available, one of which is already in Double-A at 20-years-old (Anthony Solometo).

So, seeing that and then seeing Kellington still pitching in Bradenton, it’s not surprising he gets overlooked.

The fact is, despite being limited last season, the righty from Vermont is on the right track in his development, taking a big step this season, especially in workload - topping 70 innings this season with the Bradenton Marauders.

It hasn’t always been easy, he’s struggled with his control at times, but he’s also shown flashes, displaying why the Pirates invested in him with an over slot deal.

Kellington actually started out the gate fairly well, posting an insane 36.7 K%, along with not great but not horrible 12.2 BB% - while posting a 3.55 ERA and 4.44 FIP. May and June is where things got rough, with the latter seeing him walk 20% of the batters he faced.

All total, in the first three months of the season Kellington posted a 4.57 ERA (5.28 FIP), with a 16% walk rate while striking out 26%.