While Joe Kelly’s prowess shone more greatly on the mound last night (1-2-3 inning, people!) he also got an at-bat, and while he didn’t get to show off his elite speed on the basepaths, he did show that he belongs in the conversation when it comes to the best hitters in the major leagues.
Yes, following his scoreless, neat and tidy inning of work, the Dodgers sent our hero to the plate with two outs and a 6-1 lead, and Kelly promptly struck out on three pitches.
Now, you may be wondering why a strikeout from Joe Kelly at the plate means he might be one of baseball’s best hitters.
Well, let’s look at some numbers.
Occupying various places in baseball’s top ten so far this year when it comes to striking out the most (which is actually a top 14, because of a big tie at 22 K’s) are some impressive names.
For example:
- Paul Goldschmidt. Ever heard of him?
- Javy Baéz. You’ve heard of him, I presume.
- Aaron Judge. Yes, that’s the tall man.
- Bryce Harper. Indeed, he does make more money than you do.
To make Kelly’s performance even more impressive, consider this: Each of those guys has already had more than 70 plate appearances this year, meaning they’ve each had more than 70 opportunities to rack up strikeouts. Imagine if Joe Kelly was getting that kind of time at the plate!
Yes, Joe Kelly showed his versatility yet again last night.
What a talent.
