As spring training approaches, the Los Angeles Dodgers could lose a fan favorite to their crosstown, American League rivals.
While the Los Angeles Angels have been active in bolstering their roster, adding a World Series-winning pitcher would bring leadership and experience to a pitching staff in need of both.
In the latest predictions from Kerry Miller at Bleacher Report, Dodgers free agent reliever Joe Kelly is expected to sign with the Angels.
“Though he’s an oft-injured, 36-year-old wild card who has been worth wins below replacement in each of the past three seasons, Kelly does have stretches where he is just unhittable, tallying 13 holds in each of 2023 and 2024,” Miller wrote. “Could be a solid seventh or eighth inning option for a bullpen that still needs work.”
Kelly recently completed his 13th MLB season, marking his fifth with the Dodgers.
In 2024, he made 35 appearances, finishing with a 1-1 record, a 4.78 ERA, and 35 strikeouts.
However, his 2024 season was plagued by shoulder issues, limiting him to just 35 appearances.
A right shoulder strain in May landed him on the 60-day injured list, forcing him to miss 61 games before making a midseason return.
Later in the year, shoulder inflammation sidelined him for another 16 games. Despite making four appearances in the season’s final two weeks, Kelly aggravated his shoulder before the NLDS, keeping him out of the postseason.
Kelly has expressed in interviews that he would only play for the Dodgers next season and would consider retirement if they don’t bring him back.
“I would blame it on the shoulder,” Kelly told Bleed Los correspondent Alysha Del Valle. “If I had to play anywhere else, I wouldn’t play.”
He also added, “I am content all around. We have a good relationship. Like I said, once I am healthy, it’s kinda like Clayton’s (Kershaw) deal, there is only one spot we will come back to. It’s either that or, you know, if my body doesn’t heal as well as it wants to, then you never know. So we’ll see.”
Over his 13-year career with the St. Louis Cardinals, Boston Red Sox, Dodgers, and Chicago White Sox, Kelly has logged 839 innings, posted a 3.98 ERA, and won three World Series titles — two with the Dodgers and one with the Red Sox.
Photo Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
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