KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ Royals right-hander Brad Keller will not be active when the club opens the regular season Friday at the Cleveland Indians.
Keller, who started Kansas City's season opener last year, returned to camp Friday after having been in isolation following a positive test for COVID-19.
Keller was in camp for the start of spring training 2.0 in Kansas City, but he had to stay away from the team after he tested positive for the coronavirus. He went on the injured list July 14.
When he rejoined the team last week, he was technically on a rehab assignment. He still hasn't come off the IL.
"He just wasn't able to progress like we were hoping for, and the COVID thing kind of put him back to where we couldn't get him in a place where we felt comfortable where he was," Royals manager Mike Matheny said. "He's making progressions, and there's a plan in place."
Matheny said the Royals are still "patching" together what their starting rotation will look like. Starting pitcher Jakob Junis will begin the season on the injured list because of his own positive COVID-19 test.
