Manager Pat Kelly's Son, Pitcher Casey Kelly, Joins Bats
August 7, 2024 - International League (IL)
Louisville Bats News Release
LOUISVILLE, Kentucky - The Cincinnati Reds today have signed veteran free agent pitcher Casey Kelly, the son of Louisville Bats Manager Pat Kelly, to a minor league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Louisville.
This will mark the first time that Pat Kelly has managed one of his children in a regular season professional game. Casey and Pat will be the first father-son duo in Louisville Bats history in any capacity.
Casey, 34, spent the last six seasons pitching for the LG Twins of the KBO in Korea. While there, he led the KBO in wins while being named an All-Star in 2022 and led the Twins to a Korean Series Championship in 2023. Just a few weeks ago on July 20, the Twins parted ways with Kelly in an emotional ceremony before thousands of fans at their home ballpark in Seoul.
Just hours later in Louisville that same night, the Bats honored Pat Kelly with a special pre-game ceremony after he became the seventh manager in Minor League Baseball history to earn 2,000 managerial wins. Casey was part of the ceremony with a video tribute to his dad, which was played on the scoreboard at Louisville Slugger Field.
Joining the Bats will be Casey's first professional action in the United States since 2018, when he split the season between the San Francisco Giants and their Triple-A affiliate in Sacramento. Casey's career began with the Boston Red Sox organization in 2009. He made his MLB debut for the San Diego Padres on August 27, 2012, the same day as his father's 57th birthday. Pat was in the building to watch his son beat the Atlanta Braves at Petco Park that night.
Overall, Casey has appeared in 26 Major League games between the Padres, Braves, and Giants between 2012-18. Pat's oldest son, Chris, 42, also played professional baseball from 2004-11, reaching as high as Double-A in the Reds' organization in 2009. Pat has coached against Casey during Spring Training a couple times and during his stint as the Reds' Bench Coach in 2018 while Casey was playing for the Giants. Pat also crossed paths with Chris at Reds Spring Training in 2009.
Casey is set to join the Bats rotation for the stretch run of the season and his Louisville debut is scheduled for Sunday's series finale against Charlotte at Louisville Slugger Field, with first pitch set for 1:05 p.m.
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