Major League Baseball’s regular season is winding down, but Zack Kelly is just getting started.
“It’s September. These guys are gassed, and I feel like I’m going through spring training again,” he told the Herald by phone. “I’m so ready just to go, I’m fresh, I’m ready.”
Kelly last pitched for the Red Sox on April 12. Walking off the mound in near tears that day capped a roller coaster three weeks during which the rookie right-hander went from making his first Opening Day roster (and pitching on the first day of the season) to the injured list. He underwent elbow surgery at the beginning of May and began a rehab assignment last week.
“I feel great, everything feels good so far. I feel good throwing, I’m recovering well, everything so far has been great,” he said. “The velocity is where I want it. I had a good one on Friday in Greenville control-wise, and then, Tuesday was a little bit different. I couldn’t command the zone the way I wanted, but obviously, the more I get game reps, I think that’ll improve.”
It’s been a long road back, almost an entire season of watching baseball, rather than playing.
“It’s been hard,” he admitted.
Aside from nights that Kelly’s pitching, he hasn’t missed a Red Sox game. “Being able to watch from afar, I’ve almost turned into a fan,” he said with a chuckle. “It’s been fun to see my guys have success. A couple guys that I came up with, guys that I’ve been grinding in the minor leagues with the last two, three years, now they’re contributors in the big leagues, and playing really good.”
On Triple-A Opening Day in 2022, Kelly was on a WooSox roster that included Triston Casas, Jarren Duran, Josh Winckowski and Connor Wong. He saw Casas’ big year coming a mile away, even when the rookie first baseman got off to a slow start.
“It’s really cool to see, but I can’t say I’m surprised,” the pitcher said. “I knew he was going to do what he does. I’ve seen it the last couple years, pretty much since I signed here, I’ve been with him on the same teams every step of the way.”
“Especially these top prospects that are under a microscope from the time they get drafted to the time they get to the big leagues, and then, once they get there, especially in a big market like Boston, every single thing you do gets critiqued,” he continued. “You want guys to go up there and be successful right away, but that’s not really how it works. There’s always going to be an adjustment period.
“April was a cold month for him, but now, see what he’s doing. I think people kind of rushed the expectations a little bit and didn’t really give him that chance to fail, which I think is also very important.”
Duran is the other side of that coin. He didn’t make the Opening Day roster, and didn’t get called up until after Kelly got hurt.
“Last year, I think maybe it was the pressure, trying to do too much,” Kelly assessed. “This year, being allowed to play the game, he got some confidence, and all of a sudden, he’s wreaking havoc on the bases, taking extra bags, causing fits out there.
“I feel like we don’t give some of these guys a chance to fail when they first come up,” he said. “It’s not realistic for guys to step into the big leagues right away, no matter how well they’re doing in Triple-A, because it’s a completely different game. Even though it’s only one level, it’s so different.”
Kelly is seeing that difference all over again as he rehabs his way through the levels of the Red Sox farm. He said he hasn’t spoken to anybody from the Red Sox about specific dates, but he’ll be in Boston next week and is scheduled to pitch two innings for Double-A Portland on Tuesday night.
“My last scheduled outing right now is the 17th, so after that, it’s really up to them,” he said. “Obviously, ideally, I’d like to be back there, and be able to be back around the guys and contribute in Boston.”
“I hope I can salvage the last two weeks of my season,” he said.
Wednesday night’s series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays was supposed to be James Paxton’s turn in the rotation.
Instead, Nick Pivetta got the start.
“We’re just giving (Paxton) a breather,” Alex Cora told reporters on Wednesday afternoon.
That “breather” is nearly a full extra week of rest. The 34-year-old southpaw is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday’s game, the second of four against the Yankees.
Paxton didn’t make his season debut until May 12, but he got off to an excellent start. By the All-Star break almost exactly two months later, he’d compiled a 2.73 ERA across 10 starts, with 64 strikeouts, 14 walks, and 17 earned runs allowed in 56 innings.
Since the break, he’s looked like a completely different pitcher. Over nine starts and 40 innings, he owns a 6.98 ERA, with 37 strikeouts, 19 walks, and 31 earned runs. His most recent outing, on Sept. 1 in Kansas City, lasted just 1.1 innings, during which the last-place Royals – who were 42-94 at the time – tagged him for six earned runs.
“I think the offspeed stuff is missing,” Cora said. “The fastball is good, location is OK, but he’s becoming a one-dimensional pitcher. The curveball has been off, the cutter-slider has been off.”
Infielder Pablo Reyes (left elbow inflammation) and pitcher Corey Kluber (right shoulder inflammation) will begin rehab assignments with Triple-A Worcester on Friday.
Marcelo Mayer’s season is officially over. The organization’s No. 1 prospect has been out since Aug. 2 with left shoulder inflammation, and the Red Sox decided not to rush the process. However, they still expect that he’ll be able to partake in the instructional program at their spring training complex in Fort Myers next week.