Arizona Diamondbacks starter Merrill Kelly tries to take a day-to-day, even pitch-to-pitch approach, but he has a specific long-term goal in mind.
Kelly told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo on Tuesday that he wants to reach 10 years of major league service time, a milestone less than 10% of big leaguers accomplish, according to the MLBPA.
Kelly started his big league career on the later side, debuting at 30 years for the 2019 D-backs. At 36 years old, he is not showing signs of slowing down in his final year under contract.
“This is the seventh, so I need three years after this,” Kelly said. “I know there’s not too many multi-year deals that are handed out for 37-year-olds. I’m aware of that.
“I’m gonna keep going as long as somebody will give me a big league jersey. I’ve said it multiple times, I would love for that to be here in Arizona. At the end of the day, it is a business and if somebody offers me two years rather than the one or whatever that may be, I’m gonna have to obviously weigh our options and see what the best thing for my family is.”
He would have to pitch through his age-39 season to reach 10 years and vest his pension, which he is prepared to do. Kelly plans to pitch until he physically cannot anymore.
After spending four seasons in South Korea and making his stateside return with his hometown D-backs, Kelly became and continues to be one of the more reliable arms in the majors.
Kelly shut out the Colorado Rockies through seven innings on Sunday, improving his ERA through 10 starts to 3.26. His 1.00 WHIP and .201 opposing batting average are both top 10 marks in the National League.
A balance of six pitches has made him dangerous, as hitters have to account for his four-seamer, changeup, cutter, sinker, curveball and slider.
“I think it’s a slam dunk,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said of Kelly reaching 10 years.
“He started late. He pitched internationally and figured out his game. He came back ready to go, and he’s been a mainstay for us ever since. I think that’s not gonna be an issue for him whatsoever. He’s got a very good year to finish up on and then go wherever he goes from there. But he’s got a lot of time left in this game.”
Lovullo credited Kelly with having the memory of a goldfish whether he has a strong outing or a poor one. That allows him to step back and process information “the right way.”
The right-hander allowed nine runs in a disastrous start at Yankee Stadium in his second appearance of the year. Since then, he’s worked a 2.02 ERA.
Kelly and fellow starter Zac Gallen are two of Arizona’s notable free agents next winter. Corbin Burnes, Eduardo Rodriguez, Brandon Pfaadt and Ryne Nelson remain under contract.
Where is Merrill Kelly at when it comes to cramping issues
An ongoing test of adversity Kelly and the D-backs have had to manage are his cramping issues in his leg, which forced him to leave starts periodically throughout the past three years.
They’ve previously occurred at Chase Field during the summer months, but this season he faced issues at Wrigley Field and Citizens Bank Park on April 20 and May 2, respectively.
Cramps have not impacted him over the last three starts, but he acknowledged that does not necessarily mean the problem is gone.
“I think it’s an ongoing process,” Kelly said. “I can’t give you an answer that the problem is completely solved, to be honest with you. We’ve had a good stretch of luck.
“The problem I’ve run into, or the issue with doing all the research I’ve done in the cramping world is it’s hard to put a stamp on what exactly it is that fixes it. There’s been a lot of different ideas tossed around. We’ve tried a lot of different things and at this point we’re just kind of throwing stuff up against the wall and seeing if it sticks.”
Different hydration and nutrition strategies and having Kelly move around more between innings have been tried to aid the issues. Fans have even sent Kelly pickles.
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