Don Kelly waiting for a chance – MLB Detroit Tigers News
Waiting to become a permanent member of a baseball team is never an easy thing to do. For Detroit Tigers’ Don Kelly, the job is even tougher. His role in the club is of a utility man and he tends to speak in the passive voice, which is a part of his job
description.
Kelly displayed some top quality hitting skills in Detroit Tigers second American League Division Game against the Oakland Athletics.
When Kelly stepped onto the plate, Tigers were trailing 3-4 but he showed great composure under pressure. Firstly, he scored on a wild pitch to level the score 4-4. Then he broke the tie with an RBI single to give the Tigers a 2-0 series lead.
The fact Kelly made his Major League Baseball debut at 27-years-old is quite astonishing. At 32 he is barely at the Tigers’ 25 man big league playoffs roster.
Kelly is a classic example of how the game of baseball treats some of the players. He is one of those performers who cherish every opportunity he is given.
"I couldn't tell you," he said, laughing. "But it's a great feeling, to be able to go up there in that situation and to be able to come through. That's just straight adrenaline right there."
"Even before the inning, you're sitting there thinking about what could happen," Kelly said. "And if I'm managing the other team, if they get a guy on third with one out and Miggy's coming up, I'm walking both guys."
"That's 'Donz' with a 'z,'" catcher Gerald Laird explained. "He gets this fire in his eye and becomes Donz with a 'z' out there."
So when he was asked about his game winning sacrifice fly hit in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday evening at Detroit, Michigan, it was not surprising to hear him talking about how thrilling his entire experience was.
After showing to his skipper that he can deliver the goods under pressure, Kelly will now be expecting to become a permanent part of Tigers’ big league roster and it will be interesting to see if Jim Leyland can help him revive his MLB career.
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