‘Business as usual’: Merrill Kelly feeling healthy, grateful to push through 5 innings in return

Merrill Kelly made his long-awaited return to the Arizona Diamondbacks’ starting pitching rotation on Sunday, overcoming some early butterflies after a nearly four-month hiatus.

He was able to get through five innings against the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies while only conceding two earned runs on 85 pitches.

“Once that third (inning) rolled around, it was business as usual. I’m back, and we can do this” Kelly told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo Monday.

After a walk to the power-hitting Kyle Schwarber, Kelly said he was a bit worried manager Torey Lovullo would pull him off the mound but understood his return start was limited from the get-go. However, Kelly lived long enough to face Trea Turner and put a close on the fifth stanza.

At the time of Kelly’s exit, Arizona held a 5-2 lead and it eventually ballooned to a 12-5 margin by game’s end. Kelly’s record improved to 3-0 in just his fifth start this season, coming off of 30 starts in arguably a career-best 2023 campaign (3.29 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 187 Ks).

“The emotional part of the rehab was probably the hardest part, and that being my first time going through it with a soft tissue injury,” Kelly said. “You kinda go through a bit of a rollercoaster … You know, sitting on the couch and watching the guys kinda teeter where they were, obviously you want to get back and help.

“Worst case scenario, I get to be home for a little bit and spend some more time with my wife and my daughter. Life could be a lot worse.”

Kelly said he was really able to see the depth of their clubhouse, especially with how the starting rotation has been thrown curveball after curveball with an injury carousal.

Ryne Nelson was definitely one of those who had to step up, the third-year player having made 20 starts through Friday’s Game 2 against the Phillies. He threw 144.0 innings all last season and is already up to 117.2 in 2024, striking out a career-high nine batters twice.

The now-healthy Kelly also said he was able to see the D-backs’ true DNA, as their offense and defense were able to balance each other to result in 12 straight series without a loss.

“I definitely wanted to make sure I was 100% ready to go,” Kelly said. “I didn’t want to rush back and risk having a setback … both for my own well-being and trying to help this team down the stretch.”

As far as comparing now to last year’s magical October run, Kelly said the team has not wavered and knows it is better as a whole unit.

The bringing up of rookie catcher Adrian Del Castillo certainly has benefitted Arizona’s winning ways, and Kelly had nothing but positives to throw at the first man to catch him in his return.

“So far so good, (Del Castillo) started tearing the cover off the ball and he’s on cloud nine right now. We’re just trying to help him ride this wave, and let him enjoy it as much as he can,” Kelly said.

Kelly is a likely starter in the Diamondbacks’ three-game road series against the Tampa Bay Rays on Aug. 16-18.