{"id":44160,"date":"2021-02-18T16:26:21","date_gmt":"2021-02-18T21:26:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=44160"},"modified":"2021-02-18T16:26:21","modified_gmt":"2021-02-18T21:26:21","slug":"merrill-kelly-recovered-arizona-diamondbacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2021\/02\/18\/merrill-kelly-recovered-arizona-diamondbacks\/","title":{"rendered":"Merrill Kelly: Recovered and Ready to Go for Arizona Diamondbacks"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Merrill Kelly had to end his 2020 season early after a start against the Oakland Athletics<\/a> due to a blood clot in his shoulder, the team and its stakeholders were rightfully concerned. Many went from concerned to worried when it turned out that he needed thoracic outlet surgery. That procedure has been the death knell for many a career.<\/p>\n

Kelly, who was one of the better pitchers in the National League in 2020, doesn\u2019t see that happening. As pitchers and catchers report to camp, he feels like \u201ca normal player again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just approaching spring training as usual and just trying to prepare for the season,\u201d Kelly said Thursday afternoon. He\u2019s not thinking about \u201cwhat happened or how I feel. I\u2019m just looking forward to getting going.\u201d<\/p>\n

He is not \u201cholding anything back right now.\u201d Pitchers don\u2019t throw full-bore when they first report to camp, and Kelly is no exception. \u201cYou take these first couple of bullpens before we start facing hitters to feel the slope (of the mound) and get the timing down,\u201d said Kelly. \u201cI\u2019m not worried about results as much as I\u2019m worried about feel right now.\u201d But he\u2019s not doing any less than what he would be doing if he weren\u2019t coming off major surgery. \u201cI feel strong. The ball is coming out well, and the body feels good.\u201d<\/p>\n

If he were holding back, that actually might be counterproductive. \u201cWhen I (ease into things), sometimes it ends up hurting me, because I don\u2019t go the same speed as I would during a game. Then I end up trying to catch up rather than feeling the same tempo.\u201d<\/p>\n

Merrill Kelly Has High Expectations for Himself<\/h3>\n

Having said all that, he still has a season ahead of him, and even the most promising spring doesn\u2019t guarantee success in the regular season. Although he doesn\u2019t feel anything in his body to indicate it, the fact remains that he\u2019s now missing a rib. He might not be able to do what he\u2019s done in the past.<\/p>\n

This is not lost on him, but he is also confident that he can continue progressing the way he was before the surgery. \u201cI set a very high bar for myself, and I was definitely happy with how I was pitching last year. I\u2019m not putting any extra pressure that I need to replicate that or prove to people that it was real. I just try to take it day by day and be the best pitcher I can be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Confidence from the Organization<\/h3>\n

During his rehab, the Diamondbacks quickly took the $4.25 million club option on his contract. This certainly gave him a proverbial shot it the arm as he worked back to game shape. It also meant a lot to him personally. \u201cIt\u2019s a breath of fresh air. I can take my time, rehab, and make sure I\u2019m ready to go for spring.\u201d Knowing that he already had a roster spot allowed him to focus solely on being physically ready for the season. It\u2019s more complicated when \u201crehabbing to try to throw for teams and get a job. It\u2019s a whole different ballgame when you\u2019re in that realm.\u201d<\/p>\n

Outlook for 2021<\/h3>\n

Merrill Kelly showed tremendous progress in 2020. One highlight was that his 2.59 ERA would have been fifth on the NL leaderboard had he pitched enough innings. However, he is not going to dwell on his past successes. Instead, he will focus on resuming his positive career progress. \u201c(I\u2019m trying not to go) into this year with expectations of what last year looked like. If you try to reach for something that happened in the past, you\u2019re setting yourself up for failure. There\u2019s not any replicating (the past). What happened is what happened. What\u2019s going to happen is up to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Main Photo:<\/p>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>