Kelly (ankle) was activated Friday from the 15-day injured list, Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun reports.
Kelly will return to the Rays' bullpen ahead of Friday night's series opener against the Guardians after missing exactly 15 days due to a left ankle sprain. The 25-year-old rookie reliever holds a solid 3.48 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 45:14 K:BB through his first 54.1 major-league innings this season.
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Rays' Kevin Kelly: Picks up first career save
Rotowire
Kelly recorded the final out of Friday's 3-2 win over the White Sox to record his first career save.
Pete Fairbanks got the call in the ninth inning for the Rays as expected, but after hitting one batter and walking another with two outs, he exited the game complaining of numbness in his fingers, forcing Kelly to finish things out. Fairbanks has dealt with this issue before -- he has Raynaud's syndrome, which impacts blood flow to the extremities in colder temperatures -- but if he ends up missing additional time, Jason Adam seems more likely to handle the bulk of the closing duties for the Rays. Kelly hasn't pitched badly as a Rule 5 rookie, however, posting a 4.20 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 13:3 K:BB through his first 15 big-league innings with two wins and a hold -- plus Friday's save -- in nine appearances.
