Boston Red Sox: Joe Kelly continues to shine in the bullpen

Joe Kelly has been sensational for the Boston Red Sox all season long and is a big reason the Boston Red Sox have the third-best bullpen ERA in the American League.

Finding bullpen arms has not been an easy task for Dave Dombrowski ever since he became the President of Baseball Operations for the Boston Red Sox in 2015.

Carson Smith and Tyler Thornburg have appeared in a combined 29 games for the Red Sox, and guys like Brad Ziegler and Addison Reed lasted just half a season.

Craig Kimbrel has been sensational for the Red Sox, but other than that, Dombrowski has had trouble finding a consistent bullpen. Since 2016, Dombrowski’s first full year with the Red Sox, 36 different players have pitched out of the bullpen.

This year, the Red Sox have the third-best bullpen ERA in the AL. Kimbrel has been a big part of that, but Joe Kelly has surpassed all expectations and has been terrific for the Red Sox all season long and has certainly contributed to that statistic.

The Boston Red Sox were unsure who the primary eighth-inning guy would be in close games to set-up for Kimbrel entering the season. In the very first game of the year, Kelly had the opportunity to establish himself as that guy. However, his first game of the season was one to forget.

Entering the game with a 4-0 lead in the eighth inning against the Rays, Kelly walked the first guy he faced, struck out the next, surrendered an RBI double, then w

up 4 runs in just 0.1 innings pitched.

Kelly put his first outing behind him

However, since then, Kelly has been one of the best relievers in baseball.

He didn’t give up a single run in the entire month of April. The 30-year-old appeared in ten games, surrendering just five hits and one walk while striking out ten in 11.1 innings of work.

His April was interrupted by his six-game suspension for his involvement in the benches-clearing ball with the New York Yankees on April 12, but it got him some respect from Red Sox fans, to say the least.

Kelly’s May was also superb. The California-native appeared in 14 games, giving up just one run, five hits, five walks in 14.1 innings of work. The right-hander also tallied three wins and one save in May.

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After a terrific two months, Kelly didn’t have a pretty start to June. He fell apart against the Astros on June 1, giving up two homers and two walks and recorded just one out after entering a one-run game in the eighth inning.

His ERA spiked from 1.70 to 2.70 after the outing. Kelly also surrendered a run against the ‘Stros on June 2, which brought his ERA to 2.96.

Cora elected not to use Kelly again until June 9, giving him a full week of rest, and it paid off. Kelly returned back to his dominant self and has not given up a run since.

On Monday night against the Orioles, the right-hander entered the game in a crucial spot. The game was still scoreless and Kelly entered the game in the seventh inning with the bases loaded. He faced Adam Jones, who already had two hits in the game, but Kelly threw five fastballs and blew past Jones for the crucial strikeout. The 30-year-old also threw a scoreless eighth inning in the game and has not given up a run since his June 2 outing.

Kelly has certainly earned the set-up role for the Red Sox. Overall, he is 3-0 with a 2.61 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP. Kelly also has two saves, 14 holds, and 32 strikeouts in 31.0 innings of work over 31 games. He has yet to give up a run at Fenway Park this year, pitching 10.2 innings while giving up just four baserunners.

Last year, Joe Kelly had a 2.79 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP over 58.0 innings of work after converting into a full-time reliever. It’s pretty safe to say the Red Sox were smart by making Kelly a reliever given his velocity that he has shown.

Is an All-Star Game appearance on the horizon for Kelly?

As mentioned, the Red Sox have the third-best bullpen ERA in the AL. Kelly’s stats have been phenomenal and is a big reason the Red Sox have the most wins in baseball.

The only thing going against Kelly’s case is that he is not a closer. However, last year, Dellin Betances, Chris Devinski, Andrew Miller, and Pat Neshek were all named All-Stars, all guys who didn’t serve as the main closer on their team.

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Kelly should certainly be considered to be an All-Star. It is safe to say that the Boston Red Sox would be in a lot tougher shape if they didn’t have a go-to guy like Kelly in the eighth inning before they turn it over to Kimbrel, who will almost certainly be an All-Star.

Kelly will be a free agent for the first time in his career this winter, and it’s safe to say he is setting himself up to be handed a hefty paycheck by a team.