Until August, the Boston Red Sox trading John Lackey to the Cardinals for Joe Kelly and Allen Craig has been an unmitigated disaster. Make no mistake, it still is right now. But Joe Kelly’s development as a relief pitcher provides the opportunity to reclaim some of that lost value.
By now, we’re all too familiar with Kelly’s story since coming to the Red Sox. Acquired on July 31, 2014, he went 4-2 with a 4.11 ERA in 10 starts. The front office and John Farrell continually insisted that he was a starter, despite his performance showing otherwise.