Rays’ bullpen showcases two contrasting changeups from Bryan Baker and Kevin Kelly

The Tampa Bay Rays have built a bullpen identity around off-speed stuff, and the latest example comes from the late innings. Two relief options, Bryan Baker and Kevin Kelly, both depend on the changeup, yet the two are described as fundamentally different in how they get swings and misses at the end of games. Where Baker’s case stands out is that his changeup has helped position him as a strong candidate to represent the Rays at next month’s All-Star Game in Philadelphia.

Baker’s profile, as characterized in the Rays’ game notes-style feature, centers on the effectiveness of his changeup. That matters for a bullpen because late-inning hitters often narrow their approach, expecting fastballs early in the at-bat. A reliever who can consistently change the hitter’s timing, particularly with a pitch that can miss bats without sacrificing strike-zone quality, gives a manager an option to extend at-bats and preserve leverage.

Kelly, the other end-of-bullpen reliever highlighted alongside Baker, also relies on the changeup, but the writeup stresses that the pair “couldn’t be any more different.” The contrast is the point. In bullpen usage, different pitch shapes, different sequencing tendencies, and different matchup patterns all influence how and when a pitcher is called on. Even when two pitchers share the same pitch type, the differences can determine whether their approach is best against specific hitter profiles or in certain counts.

This is where the Rays bullpen becomes more than a list of arms. In a typical postseason-ready bullpen, teams want at least two paths to outs late in games: one that generates soft contact and one that suppresses damage with swing-and-miss ability, or two pitch mixes that force hitters into distinct decision trees. A changeup-heavy bullpen can accomplish that, but only if the pitchers’ changeups function differently enough to keep opponents from settling into a single timing plan.

All-Star candidacy adds another layer. Baker being singled out as a strong candidate for Tampa Bay at the All-Star Game in Philadelphia, in part because of his changeup, reflects how the pitch can become a public-facing calling card. Even beyond the mid-summer showcase, the underlying value is the same: a dependable changeup can turn the seventh, eighth, or ninth inning from a guessing game into something closer to a repeatable method.

What to watch next is how the Rays use each reliever in the highest-leverage moments. With both pitchers identified as changeup believers, the key questions are whether Tampa Bay deploys them for different hitter matchups, different batter-handedness situations, or different count profiles. If the bullpen feature is accurate, the Rays have found two pitchers who share a foundation, while still offering distinct ways to end at-bats at the backend of the roster.