Another DBacks injury: Merrill Kelly scratched with sore shoulder
SAN FRANCISCO — Right-hander Merrill Kelly, the club’s No. 2 starter, was scratched Sunday due to a right shoulder injury, yet another blow to a Diamondbacks team already overwhelmed by injuries.
Kelly said the initial diagnosis, following an MRI on Saturday, is a “mild teres major strain.” He will return to Phoenix on Sunday and might undergo additional tests to better determine the severity of the injury and the timeline for a return.
For now, it seems likely he will land on the injured list, though there is hope he won’t be down for long.
“We feel like this is going to be something he’s going to work through rather quickly,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. “We’re keeping our fingers crossed.”
Kelly, who has been one of the better starters in baseball over the past few seasons, was off to a strong start to his year, posting a 2.19 ERA in 24⅔ innings across four starts.
He said he first felt discomfort while playing catch on Saturday.
“I think at this point in my career I’m pretty decent at being able to tell the difference on what’s OK to keep going through and then what’s not,” Kelly said. “This one kind of gave me the opinion that something else was going on.”
The injury is the latest blow to the Diamondbacks' rotation. On Thursday, right-hander Ryne Nelson was struck on the elbow by a comebacker. He was placed on the injured list the next day. The unit already is without left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez, who is dealing with a slow-to-heal lat strain in his left shoulder.
The Diamondbacks recalled right-hander Slade Cecconi to start in Kelly’s place on Sunday in the series finale at San Francisco. He took the place of right-hander Justin Martinez, who was optioned to Triple-A Reno.
As for Nelson’s rotation spot — his turn comes up Tuesday in St. Louis — the Diamondbacks are undecided. Left-hander Logan Allen, who took over for Nelson on Thursday night and threw 4⅔ innings of one-run ball, is an option if he isn’t needed in relief the next couple of days. Another possibility is left-hander Tommy Henry, who was optioned last week but could replace Kelly on the roster should he officially land on the injured list.
In addition to Kelly, Rodriguez and Nelson, the Diamondbacks have been without a handful of others for much or all of the season. Closer Paul Sewald strained an oblique in the final week of spring training. Center fielder Alek Thomas (hamstring) shortstop Geraldo Perdomo (knee) each suffered injuries during the season-opening homestand.
The Diamondbacks have acutely felt most of those injuries as several of their replacements have been unable to seamlessly fill voids.
“I think this year is probably the most injuries I’ve seen this early in the year for our group of guys, but it’s definitely not unusual, not out of character, for what we do,” Kelly said. “I think the guys in here, there’s really only one option and that’s to keep going.”
A couple days earlier, the Diamondbacks felt a positive jolt from the addition of left-hander Jordan Montgomery to the roster. Kelly believes something similar will happen as the injured players begin to return.
“Whenever someone comes off, when one of the starters heads off the IL, I think it’s a little bit of an injection of energy coming back,” Kelly said. “Maybe we’ll have a steady IV of energy over the next month or two or however long.”
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Another DBacks injury: Merrill Kelly scratched with sore shoulder
