KBO League's reverse-export myth was overshadowed by batting silence and late-game loss.
Merrill Kelly, 36, of the Arizona Diamondbacks, threw seven innings of six-hit ball, walked eight and struck out two in a Quality Start-plus performance against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park in San Francisco, California, on Saturday (June 6).
With a two-run lead in the top of the first, he walked leadoff hitter Mike Yastrzemski to load the bases, but got Heliot Ramos to fly out to shortstop and Michael Conforto to ground into a double play at shortstop-second baseman-to-first baseman.
In the bottom of the second, he struck out leadoff hitters Matt Chapman and Ramonte Wade Jr. in succession. His curveball and sinker had sharp drop angles. After allowing a double to Tyler Fitzgerald, he struck out Patrick Bailey on a straight pitch to end the inning. He was fortunate that Bailey's well-timed pitch went into his glove.
The bottom of the third inning was another highlight. Grant McCray reached on an error by the shortstop and stole second, putting runners on second and third with nobody out. Brett Weasley followed with a walk to put runners on first and third, but Yastrzemski struck out looking and Ramos grounded out to shortstop to keep the inning scoreless.
Kelly gave up his first run in the top of the fourth inning with a 2-0 lead. Back-to-back singles to leadoff hitter Conforto and Chapman put runners on second and third with no outs. Wade Jr. and Fitzgerald struck out in succession to get two quick outs, but Bailey gave up a two-run, tiebreaking double. A four-pitch low sinker on a 2B-1S unfavorable count drove in the tying run.
Kelly quickly settled down in the bottom of the fifth, striking out Weasley, Yastrzemski, and Ramos. In the bottom of the sixth, she gave up a leadoff double to Conforto, but got Chapman to fly out to center, Wade Jr. to fly out to shortstop, and Fitzgerald to ground out to shortstop.
Kelly also took the mound in the bottom of the seventh with the score tied at 2-2 and got two strikeouts against Bailey-McCray-Weasley to end the inning. It was his first quality start in 155 days, since April 4 at home against the New York Yankees (seven innings, two runs, one earned).
Kelly gave way to Joe Mantifley in the bottom of the eighth with the score tied 2-2 to end the game. He threw 94 pitches (61 for strikes). Despite pitching seven innings of two-run ball, Kelly couldn't get the win.
To make matters worse, Arizona lost a heartbreaker in the bottom of the ninth inning when Fitzgerald singled up the middle with the bases loaded and two outs, and Bailey hit a game-tying double off of him. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak and left them in third place in the National League West (79-62).
Kelly, meanwhile, was a one-two punch for the SK Wyverns (now the SSG Landers) in the KBO from 2015 to 2018. He went 48-32 with a 3.86 ERA in 119 games over four seasons, including 16 wins in 2017, which earned him a 2+2 year contract with Arizona in 2019. He then signed a two-year, $18 million extension in May 2022.
Now in his sixth year in the big leagues, Kelly is 4-0 with a 4.08 ERA in nine starts (24 earned runs in 53 innings). He suffered a shoulder injury in late April and underwent a lengthy four-month rehabilitation before returning on August 12th.
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