Kevin Kelly Stats & Scouting Report — College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects

Track Record: Kelly spent two seasons in James Madison's rotation including a year as the school's Friday starter before the Guardians selected him in the 19th round. The Guardians immediately moved him to the bullpen. His lone pro start is as a two-inning opener, but his time as a college starter has helped him battle and show plenty of guile. Even with a crowded 40-man roster, the Rays liked Kelly enough to pay cash to the Rockies to get the Rockies to pick him for them in the Rule 5 draft.

Scouting Report: Kelly is a sidearmer who rarely dominates, but never gets dominated. There's nothing all that flashy about his low-90s sinker, his four-seam fastball or his sweepy average slider. But hitters rarely square Kelly up, and more often, they end up hitting a grounder off his sinker or slider for weak contact. Like a number of sinker-slider righthanders, he's deadly to righthanded hitters but more vulnerable against lefties, although he can drop over a curve to try to give them something else to worry about.

The Future: The Rays love to give hitters different looks when they go to the bullpen. Kelly fits that perfectly, and he was one of the most MLB-ready pitchers available in the Rule 5 draft as a reliever with more than 30 successful outings at Triple-A.

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 50. Slider: 55. Curveball: 45. Control: 55.