Merrill Kelly made his first regular season start for the Arizona Diamondbacks since July 26 on Tuesday, and although his re-debut was far from perfect, he was effective enough to earn a victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
Kelly delivered 5.1 innings with two earned runs in a 4-3 win, throwing 86 pitches in his return from the injured list.
He was 10th in Major League Baseball last year in starts with at least 5.1 innings and two or fewer earned runs (18), according to Stathead. In that sense, Tuesday was business as usual for the veteran nicknamed “Merrill the Mainstay.”
After a 1-2-3 first inning, the right-hander allowed some hard contact, including a solo home run from catcher Samuel Basallo, in the second inning. He struggled with walks in the third, even walking in a run.
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But Kelly appeared to settle in, stranding the bases loaded in the third and getting through the next 2.1 innings with one hit and two strikeouts. He finished with five hits, four walks and three strikeouts, as his changeup was effective at missing bats (four whiffs, one ball in play).
Arizona led 4-2 when Kelly walked off the field at Oriole Park.
Kelly signed back with Arizona over the winter, wanting to return to his hometown team after having been traded to the Texas Rangers at the deadline last summer. He signed a two-year deal with a vesting option and was quickly named the Opening Day starter in spring training.
He was pumped for the chance to start the opener for the first time in his career, but he dealt with intercostal nerve irritation in his back that pushed him back in camp. After rehab starts in Triple-A Reno and extended spring training, the time came for Kelly to return to the rotation.
Down 2-0, the Diamondbacks (10-8) came back with four runs in the fifth inning, three on a go-ahead home run from Ildemaro Vargas — following a seven-pitch walk from Jorge Barrosa.
The Diamondbacks received scoreless performances in the bullpen from Taylor Clarke (1.2 innings), Ryan Thompson and Paul Sewald. Thompson threw one pitch, coming in with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth inning to face Jeremiah Jackson, who hit a grand slam on Monday.
Thompson fielded a dribbler and threw a strike to first base, and Sewald took care of a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his sixth save.
Ildemaro Vargas makes Diamondbacks history
Vargas threw his bat head at a sweeper from Orioles starter Trevor Rogers and got just enough of the ball to send it over the left-field wall in the fifth inning.
With the blast, Vargas extended his hitting streak to 11 games to open the season, which set a Diamondbacks franchise record.
David Peralta, Didi Gregorius, Willie Bloomquist, Tony Bautista and Steve Finley previously held the record with 10.
Vargas has been one of the most impactful offseason signings in the league three weeks into the season. Vargas signed a minor league deal to return to the D-backs and made the team out of camp, and he is batting .381 with a 1.076 OPS so far.
The Diamondbacks scratched Ketel Marte from the lineup with lower back tightness minutes before first pitch, moving Vargas up to the lead-off spot. Vargas moved from first base to second and made several impressive defensive stops.
The fourth run of the fifth inning came from a Jose Fernandez RBI double off the wall in center field. Rogers, who allowed four runs in his first three starts, was chased before getting out of the fifth inning on Tuesday.
Arizona out-hit Baltimore 10-7 but only scored in the one inning. Six of Arizona’s starters recorded hits, led by Geraldo Perdomo’s three singles.
Diamondbacks’ road trip finale
The D-backs conclude their nine-game, East Coast road trip on Wednesday at 9:35 a.m. MST.
Arizona will return to Chase Field on Friday with a winning record on the trip, as the D-backs are 5-3 eight games in.
Eduardo Rodriguez will pitch for Arizona on Wednesday, while right-hander Kyle Bradish gets the ball for Baltimore. The D-backs can win all three road series on the trip with a victory on Wednesday.
Catch the game on 98.7 and the Arizona Sports app.
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