SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Most springs, Torey Lovullo waits until near the end of camp to announce his Opening Day starter, but this year the choice was so obvious to the Diamondbacks manager that he announced it less than a week after pitchers and catchers reported for Spring Training.
Merrill Kelly will take the ball for Arizona when the 2026 season opens at Dodger Stadium on March 26. It will be the first Opening Day start of his career.
Kelly, 37, returned to the Diamondbacks this offseason on a two-year, $40 million contract after Arizona dealt him to the Rangers at the Trade Deadline last year.
While he was originally drafted by the Rays in the eighth round in 2010, Kelly did not reach the Majors with them and after the 2014 season, he signed a deal to play in Korea for four seasons.
The Diamondbacks signed him in December 2019 and he joined their rotation that year.
After initially struggling, Kelly settled in to become a fixture in the Arizona rotation, earning the nickname Merrill the Mainstay.
Aside from the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and '24, when he suffered a strained shoulder, Kelly has never made fewer than 27 starts in a season. And when he pitched, you knew you were likely going to get a quality start.
In 172 big league starts, Kelly has a 3.77 ERA and a 113 OPS+.
With the Diamondbacks struggling at last year's Trade Deadline, Kelly was traded to the Rangers for a trio of promising pitching prospects -- Mitch Bratt, Kohl Drake and David Hagaman.