Prior to first pitch of a must-win Game 6 against the Atlanta Braves, the Los Angeles Dodgers removed Joe Kelly from their National League Championship Series roster and replaced him with David Price.
Kelly sustained a right biceps strain that prevented him from making it out of the first inning in his start at Dodger Stadium on Thursday. Kelly faced just four batters, threw 24 pitches and surrendered a two-run home run to Freddie Freeman.
Even with the subpar outing, Kelly had been one of the more reliable options in the Dodgers bullpen since the start of the postseason. He allowed three runs in 5.1 innings of work and recorded five strikeouts against one walk across seven appearances.
With Kelly being removed from the Dodgers’ NLCS roster, his season officially comes to an end. Should L.A. overcome their 3-2 deficit to Atlanta, the right-hander would be ineligible to play in the World Series.
Price is back on the Dodgers roster for a second time this postseason. He was added for the NL Division Series after being left off the Wild Card Game, but did not pitch in any of the five games against the San Francisco Giants.
Price went 5-2 with a 4.03 ERA, 4.23 FIP and 1.43 WHIP across 39 games (11 starts) this year. He struggled late in the season, which could be attributed to left elbow soreness that surfaced in September.
Price adds to Dodgers postseason injuries
Price taking Kelly’s spot on the Dodgers’ NLCS roster marked the second change this week as Justin Turner previously was removed due to a Grade 2 left hamstring strain and replaced by Andy Burns.
Justin Bruihl also is dealing with arm soreness and was unavailable to pitch in Game 5. However, L.A. thus far has not made a move with him, which would have ended his season as well.
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