The Korean Series experience led to victory in the Major League fall baseball season.
Merrill Kelly (35, Arizona Diamondbacks), the ‘reverse export legend’ who achieved the greatest success in the Major League among foreign players from the KBO League, won his fall baseball debut against the LA Dodgers.
In the interview, she talked about her experience winning the Korean Series and was proud of being from the KBO league.
Kelly started in Game 1 of the National League Division Series (NLDS) against the Dodgers in the 2023 Major League Postseason on the 8th (Korean time), and led Arizona to a 11-2 victory with a pitching pitch of 6⅓ innings, allowing 3 hits, 2 walks, striking out 5, and allowing no runs. 카지노사이트
This was in contrast to Dodgers starting pitcher
From the first inning, Arizona’s batting lineup scored 6 runs from Kershaw, making Kelly’s fall baseball debut easy.
She prevented the crisis with two outs and runners on second base in the second inning and one out and first and second bases in the third inning without allowing a run, and then settled it with a three-way strike in the 4th to 6th inning.
Kelly, who threw 89 pitches until the 7th inning with 1 out, had a maximum speed of 95.5 mph (153.7 km), an average of 94 mph (151.3 km), four-seam fastballs (31), cutters (30), changeups (15), and curves (6).
He threw a mix of sinkers (5), sinkers (5), and sliders (2).
Meanwhile, Kelly was particularly weak against the Dodgers, a team in the West Division of the National League.
After his debut in 2019, he struggled with no wins, 11 losses, and an ERA of 5.49 in 16 games against the Dodgers.
He had no wins this year as well, with 2 losses in 4 games and an ERA of 3.98, but he overcame his nemesis by getting his first win against the Dodgers in the postseason.
In an official interview after the game, Kelly said, “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t upset about not being able to beat the Dodgers. But he didn’t think at all.
If you think about that before he even stepped on the mound, I thought he would go down after only throwing 8 pitches,” he said.
“He has never made the playoffs in the big leagues, but he has been in the playoffs in Korea and Triple A.
Of course, it’s not at the same level, but he’s learned enough to know that anything can happen in the playoffs.
My intention was to try to change my destiny,” he said.
This day was Kelly’s first fall baseball appearance in the Major League.
After his debut in 2019, Arizona did not play fall baseball for four years until last year.
However, Kelly experienced fall baseball by playing for the SK Wyverns (currently SSG Landers) in the KBO League from 2015 to 2018.
In three postseasons in 2015, 2017, and 2018, he struggled compared to the season with a total of 6 games, 1 win, 1 loss, and 1 hold, and an ERA of 5.92, but in the 2018 Korean Series, he contributed greatly to the championship with 2 games, 1 win, and an average ERA of 2.19.
In the official interview that followed, the question was asked, “Do you think this is the most important match of your career so far?” In response, Kelly said, “Maybe so,” but added, “Obviously, the Korean Series is a big tournament, and we won the championship.
I would like to say it is similar to winning in Korea,” he said, not forgetting the value of winning the Korean Series.
Kelly continued, “I’m a pretty calm and laid-back person.
I try not to pay too much attention to things I can’t control.
I’m not trying to make things bigger than they really are,” he said.
“I want to give credit to our players who rushed into Kershaw from the first inning and scored 6 points.
Thanks to this, I was able to pitch aggressively with a little more ease,” he said, expressing his gratitude to his fellow hitters.
Kelly’s father also visited Dodger Stadium that day and watched the game.
Actually, her dad missed his flight this morning,” said Kelly, who patted her chest as she looked toward her family’s box as she came off the mound in the seventh inning.
He was a little upset working that part out, but he thought it might be a good distraction for me.
It was a good thing she tried to keep her composure as much as possible.
She also shared her backstory, saying, “I am grateful to her father for not going to the airport early.”
Fortunately, Kelly’s father found a new flight from Phoenix to LA and arrived at the stadium on time.
It was the best day of Kelly’s life as she became a proud son to her father.
Meanwhile, Kelly played for SK in the KBO League from 2015 to 2018 with a total of 119 games (729⅔ innings) for four years, 48 wins, 32 losses, an average ERA of 3.86, and 642 strikeouts.
He only played in the minor leagues in the United States, but he stepped up in Korea and signed a 2+2 year contract with Arizona worth up to $14.5 million.
Although he debuted in the major leagues at the age of 31, he established himself as a key starter with a total of 127 games (750⅔ innings) over 5 years, 48 wins, 43 losses, an ERA of 3.80, and 681 strikeouts.
Even after signing a contract extension with Arizona for 2+1 years and $18 million guaranteed before the season last year, he has continued to consistently post double-digit multipliers for two consecutive years.
This season, he had a career-high season with 12 wins, 8 losses, 3.29 ERA, and 187 strikeouts in 30 games (177⅔ innings).
He was at the center of the Arizona sensation by winning his fall baseball debut.