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Keone Kela, the former Texas Rangers closer who was dealt to the Pittsburgh Pirates in July, 2018, will apparently not be speaking to the media this season.
Kela, who turns 26 in April, was a 12th round draft pick of the Rangers in 2012 who claimed a roster spot on Opening Day, 2015, and established himself during his time in Texas as a terrific reliever when he was healthy, while also developing a reputation for being a bit difficult.
Kela was traded to the Pirates in July, 2018, for lefthanded pitcher Taylor Hearn and a player to be named later, who ended up being teenaged corner infielder Sherten Apostel. Kela was shut down for pretty much all of September, 2018, due to what the team said was a workload management decision.
No reason was provided about why Kela won’t be talking to the media, and we’ll see if he sticks with this vow for the entire season. That being said, if I were to pick a current or former Ranger to announce he was boycotting the media, Kela would have been high on my list of candidates.