Boston Red Sox call up first wave of September reinforcements
By Sean Penney
Joe Kelly
It wasn’t long ago that Red Sox fans were ready to kick Kelly to the curb, but the right-hander has found new life as a reliever.
Kelly has been a constant disappointment in previous attempts to stick him in the starting rotation since he was acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals mid-way through the 2014 season. He would tease us with flashes of brilliance and a blazing fastball, but failed to find consistent success.
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The bottom fell out for Kelly this season, as he produced a brutal 8.46 ERA through six starts before the Red Sox finally gave up on the idea of relying on him as a starter.
Kelly returned to the team briefly in late July, showing some promising signs as a reliever by allowing only one run in 3 2/3 innings over three appearances out of the bullpen and has thrived in his new relief role since being demoted back to Pawtucket in early August. He allowed only one run on a walk and six hits while striking out 16 in 11 innings in his latest stint down in Triple-A.
Pitching out of the bullpen has allowed Kelly to rely more on his fastball, which gets an uptick in velocity working in shorter outings. A limited arsenal was one of the issues that always held him back as a starter and it’s long been questioned if he would be better served working out of the bullpen. Based on the latest results from Pawtucket, it seems Kelly is finally settling into that role. He could provide the Red Sox a tremendous boost if he can help solve the late-inning issues that have plagued the team in front of closer Craig Kimbrel.
Next: Ryan Hanigan