BIOGRAPHY
Keury Mella was born August 2, 1993, in Bonao, Dominican Republic. He is a pitcher in the MLB.
Mella signed with the San Francisco Giants as an international free agent in 2011. He made his professional debut in 2012 with the Dominican Summer League Giants. He spent 2013 with Arizona League Giants and Salem-Keizer Volcanoes and 2014 with the Augusta GreenJackets.
On July 30, 2015, the Giants traded Mella and Adam Duvall to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for Mike Leake. The Reds added him to their 40-man roster after the 2016 season. He made his MLB debut on September 20, 2017, and pitched in 4 games for the Reds.
In 2016 he spent most of the season at Class A Daytona, where he made 24 of his season's 25 starts and his only relief appearance. Mella made his only other start in Class AAA Louisville's final game of the season, he threw 7.0 innings in his 4-1 victory vs Indianapolis. His season ERA of 3.76 was eighth-best among all Reds minor league pitchers. Following the season, Mella was rated by MLB.com the ninth-best prospect in the organization.
In 2017 on his Major League debut Mella made 2 relief apps for the Reds (9/20 vs StL, 9/30 at Chi). He was the last of the 17 Reds players to make Major League debuts, on 9/20 vs STL he became the 31st and final pitcher to appear in a game for the Reds this season, 1 shy of the club single-season record. On that appearance vs STL, he was just his second above Class AA. He retired his first 4 batters, including a strikeout of Luke Weaver, before walking Matt Carpenter. Mella threw a perfect fourth inning before allowing Yadier Molina's 2-out, 2-run double in the fifth. He spent the minor league season at Class AA Pensacola, where his 26 starts fell 1 shy of the Southern league lead. He was promoted to Cin on 9/12 after the Blue Wahoos won the Southern League's Southern Division championship series over Jacksonville. Following the season Mella pitched for Este in the Dominican Winter League (5g, 0-0, 1.23, 1sv, 7.1ip, 5h, 2bb, 6k). He entered the season rated by Baseball America the 19th-best prospect in the organization.
In 2018 he spent most of the season in the minor leagues, where in 21 starts combined he went 9-4, 3.00 for Pensacola and Louisville. Mella was a mid-season Southern League All-Star. From 7/27-8/12 made all 4 of his relief apps for the Reds. He made his last appearance of the season on 8/24 for Louisville vs Indianapolis. On November 2018, Mella was added to the Reds' 40-man roster.
