Although it was only 1.1 combined rehab innings with the Dodgers Low Single-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes that consisted of a combined 23 total pitches (12 strikes), by all indications, 33-year-old Dodgers right-hander Joe Kelly will be activated from the Injured List for the upcoming three-game series against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park, which begins following Monday’s scheduled off day.

In fact, prior to Sunday’s ugly 7-2 loss to the NL East third-place New York Mets at a sold-out Dodger Stadium and before Kelly’s second rehab outing, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts even said so.

“He was rusty, stuff was good, so we just felt that, because of that, he started that, opener,” Roberts said of Kelly’s first rehab game on Friday in which he faced three batters, walking two of them and striking out the third on 16 total pitches of which seven were strikes. “He’s going to pitch today coming out of the ‘pen, throw an inning, and I expect him to be good and we expect to activate him in that San Diego series.”

In that second game, the Anaheim, CA native and third-round draft pick in 2009 by the St. Louis Cardinals out of UC Riverside faced three batters, with one strikeout on seven total pitches, of which five were strikes.

Out of respect for Kelly and his family, the Dodgers never disclosed why the hard-throwing right hander was placed on the IL, leading to rumors and speculation that it was COVID-19 related. But here again, this is nothing more than rumor and speculation and, quite frankly, doesn’t really matter.

…so long as he returns to action as the same Joe Kelly that we have all come to know and love.

Play Ball!

  *  *  *  *  *  *