The Braves announced Saturday after their victory against the Phillies that Casey Kelly is scheduled to make his first-ever start for the Braves on Sunday afternoon. It will be his first start in the majors since Oct. 2.
Here are seven things to know about Kelly:
• He was acquired by the Braves on Dec. 10, 2015 in the trade that sent catcher Christian Bethancourt to the Padres.
• Born Oct. 4, 1989 in Sarasota, Fla., Kelly was a first-round draft choice by the Red Sox in 2008 out of Sarasota High School. He was the 30th and last pick of the round. Other players chosen in the first round that year included Tim Beckham of Griffin High School (No. 1 by the Rays), Pedro Alvarez (No. 2 by the Pirates), Eric Hosmer (No. 3 by the Royals), Brian Matusz (No. 4 by the Orioles), Buster Posey (No. 5 by the Giants) and Gordon Beckham of UGA (No. 8 by the White Sox) among the top 10.
• The Red Sox traded Kelly to the Padres on Dec. 6, 2010 in the trade that also sent Anthony Rizzo to the Padres and Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox. Today, none of those three remain with the Padres or the Red Sox.
• At Triple-A Gwinnett this season, Kelly made seven appearances, five of them starts, and pitched 37 2/3 innings. He was 2-1 with a 2.63 ERA with 29 strikeouts, 20 walks issued and 22 hits allowed.
• In the big leagues, Kelly has a 2-5 record with a 6.44 ERA. He was on the Braves’ roster from April 20-23 and made one appearance (April 22 in relief against the Mets at Turner Field). He pitched three innings, allowing one run on three hits, with no walks or strikeouts. Among the hits were doubles by Yoenis Cespedes and David Wright.
• Kelly underwent Tommy John surgery in April 2013. He did two injury rehab assignments in the 2014 season, but didn’t pitch again in the majors till in 2015, when he made two starts and one relief appearance. He compiled an 0-2 record with a 7.94 ERA, allowing 19 hits and 10 earned runs in 11 1/3 innings.
• Before the surgery, Kelly made six starts for the Padres in 2012 and was 2-3 with a 6.21 ERA. He struck out 26 in 29 innings, but allowed 39 hits and 20 earned runs. He also was on the disabled list twice with Double-A San Antonio last year.
