Phillies Make Plethora of Roster Moves To Active Brian Keller

The Philadelphia Phillies are in desperate need of some help on the pitching staff and are turning to an internal option to try and help stabilize the backend of the rotation.

With a black hole at the No. 5 spot, the Phillies are giving a shot to 32-year-old Brian Keller, who will be making his MLB debut on Saturday as a bulk inning relief pitcher behind veteran reliever Tim Mayza, who is operating as the opener.

To make room for Keller officially being added to the roster, the team made a plethora of roster moves, shaking up the pitching staff once again. Since he was not on the 40-man roster, a move had to be made there.

Instead of designating someone for assignment, Philadelphia opted to move left-handed relief pitcher Tanner Banks to the 60-day injured list. Keller, who will wear No. 48, will take that spot on the 40-man roster.

Brian Keller officially added to Phillies roster

Feb 21, 2018; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Brian Keller during media day at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

To make room on the 26-man roster, the team has optioned Alex McFarlane to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. While a demotion from the Big Leagues, it is actually a promotion for the flame-throwing righty, who was called up originally from Double-A Reading.

Rumors were swirling that the Phillies wanted to add another lefty to the staff, and that is what they have done. Kyle Backhus is back with the Major League team, being recalled from Lehigh Valley.

Another roster move had to be made so that Philadelphia was compliant with the 26-man roster rules. As a result, Max Lazar was optioned back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley to be a part of their bullpen.

Prior to tonight’s game against the New York Yankees, the Phillies announced the following roster moves:

Right-handed pitcher Brian Keller had his contract selected from triple-A Lehigh Valley and will wear No. 48

Left-handed pitcher Tanner Banks was transferred to the 60-day…
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 25, 2026

The Phillies have been shaking up the pitching staff and bullpen with regularity recently and are hoping this combination can stick. If things don’t work out this time, it will put even more pressure on Dave Dombrowski to make moves ahead of the MLB trade deadline.

While Keller will assuredly have some nerves for his Major League debut against the New York Yankees, he is playing with house money. No. 5 starters this season, Taijuan Walker, Andrew Painter, Alan Rangel and a few openers, have gone 5-20 with a 7.33 ERA.

That isn’t a hard bar to surpass. If he can perform anywhere close to what he was providing the IronPigs at the Triple-A level, it will be a massive win for the franchise. Over his last four starts at Lehigh Valley, he allowed only two runs and went at least six innings in three of the outings.

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