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Not all big-league careers are built the same. Take Diamondbacks right-hander Merrill Kelly, for example. Kelly didn't make his MLB debut until the age of 30 with the Diamondbacks after the Tampa Bay Rays drafted him out of Arizona State in the eighth round in 2010. Kelly spent four seasons pitching in Korea before returning to North America for the 2019 season.
Not only has his stateside return been successful, Kelly has morphed into one of the more reliable pitchers in the National League. Absent of gaudy strikeout totals, Kelly's consistency and run-prevention ability are among the best in the game.
That said, a shoulder injury has limited the 35-year-old to just four starts this season. Let's check in on that shoulder as well as what fantasy managers can expect upon his return.
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Merrill Kelly Injury Update for Fantasy Baseball
Kelly hasn't pitched since an April 15 outing against the Chicago Cubs but it appears he has his sights set on a specific road trip for his return. According to Si.com's Jake Oliver, Kelly plans to return for a mid-August road trip through Tampa Bay, Miami, and Boston. Kelly told Oliver that he was originally targeting a return date closer to the All-Star break but it will end up being later than that.
Torey Lovullo said that Merrill Kelly probably won’t return by the All-Star break.
"We're being very cautious with Merrill ... If we've got to wait a little bit of extra time on the front side to get him back for the remaining month and a half of baseball or two months of… pic.twitter.com/FgiWaZySmg
— PHNX Diamondbacks (@PHNX_Dbacks) June 16, 2024
In most cases, injury updates come from a manager or general manager. This one comes straight from the horse's mouth as fantasy managers can go ahead and circle said road trip for the veteran's return to action.
Merrill Kelly Fantasy Baseball Outlook
Kelly has had to fight a middling 22% career strikeout rate to remain fantasy-relevant, and he has done just that. He managed a solid 16.3% K-BB% last season on the back of an increased 25.9% K% despite an increased 9.6% BB%. Interestingly, he has posted an identical K-BB% this season, albeit in a small sample.
The owner of 63 starts over the last two seasons, Kelly posted a 3.33 ERA in that time, going 25-16 in the process. His excellent run-prevention results have allowed the D-backs to stay in ball games every fifth day before his injury this season. His 25 wins over the past two seasons are tied for 11th in all of baseball.
Merrill Kelly was carving 'em up. #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/Y3zxxPcPtw
— MLB (@MLB) October 29, 2023
He's not going to pile up the punchouts but fantasy managers can expect more run-prevention consistency and win upside from Kelly when he can return, hopefully by his mid-August target date.
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