The Texas Rangers added to their starting rotation by acquiring veteran right-hander Merrill Kelly from the Arizona Diamondbacks before Thursday’s trade deadline, according to multiple reports.
Arizona received three prospects — left-handers Kohl Drake and Mitch Bratt and right-hander David Hagaman — for the 36-year-old Kelly.
Kelly is 9-6 with a 3.22 ERA in 22 starts this season. He has struck out 121 in 128 2/3 innings.
Kelly joins a strong Texas rotation led by right-handers Jacob deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi.
The Rangers, including manager Bruce Bochy, surely got a good look at Kelly during the 2023 World Series.
Texas prevailed in five games but Arizona’s lone win came during Kelly’s one start. He bottled up a hot Texas lineup for one run and three hits over seven innings and he struck out nine without a walk.
Kelly went 3-1 with a 2.25 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 24 innings over four starts during the 2023 postseason.
Overall, Kelly is 62-50 with a 3.74 ERA in 162 starts over seven seasons with the Diamondbacks.
Drake, 25, was rated as the Rangers’ No. 5 prospect by MLB Pipeline. He was 5-4 with a 3.10 ERA in 16 appearances (15 starts) between the Double-A and Triple-A levels this season.
Bratt, 22, was ranked No. 9. He went 6-3 with a 3.18 ERA in 18 appearances (17 starts) at Double-A Frisco.
Hagaman, 22, was the No. 13 prospect in the Texas system. He was 0-1 with a 2.82 ERA in eight starts between Rookie ball and Class-A this season.
–Field Level Media
