With less than an hour to go before the trade deadline, the Texas Rangers have pushed a few more chips toward the middle of the table, acquiring Merrill Kelly from the Arizona Diamondbacks, league sources told The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.
As the deadline neared, “rotation help” did not appear to be atop the Rangers’ needs — with Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom at the top, their rotation has been a strength all season long. But after acquiring Danny Coulombe from the Twins earlier in the day, the acquisition of Kelly might be something more akin to what the Reds did on Wednesday: adding a starter who could push one of their other starters — perhaps Kumar Rocker or Patrick Corbin — into long relief.
In exchange for Kelly, the Rangers will send a package that will include lefty Kohl Drake and right-hander David Hagaman.
Kelly doesn’t throw particularly hard (92 mph), but he mixes six pitches, boasts a great chase rate and induces plenty of whiffs on his changeup and slider. At 37 years old, he is amidst one of his best years, going 9-6 with a career-best 3.22 ERA and 121 strikeouts in 22 starts this season. He’s on pace for about 200 innings, and also allowing the fewest hits per nine innings of his career (6.9)
Kelly ranked No. 8 on The Athletic’s trade deadline Big Board. An impending free agent, he is owed about $2.2 million for the remainder of the season.
After reviving his career with a successful stint in Korea and establishing himself as a solid big leaguer with the Diamondbacks, Kelly became the prototypical veteran rental starter who could chew up innings for his new team. Given Arizona’s standing in the National League West, a trade of Kelly seemed unavoidable.
The Diamondbacks’ rotation was supposed to be a strength, with Corbin Burnes and Zac Gallen anchoring a group that also included Kelly, Eduardo Rodriguez, Brandon Pfaadt and Ryne Nelson. Instead, Burnes is on the shelf after elbow surgery, and Gallen, Rodriguez and Pfaadt have been inconsistent.
For Rangers fans, Kelly is not an unknown name. He faced them in the 2023 World Series, allowing just one run in seven innings in Game 2 — the Diamondbacks’ only win of the series.
(Photo of Merrill Kelly pitching in the 2023 World Series: Sam Hodde / Getty Images)