BREAKING: Red Sox reliever returns after ‘sour taste’ with new pitch MLB The Show had him throwing

Red Sox right-handed reliever Zack Kelly added a two-seam fastball to his pitch arsenal over the offseason, a pitch he had used earlier in his career but not recently. He discussed the addition with the team, deciding to “mess around” with it and see how it develops. Kelly has already thrown it in his spring training appearances, noting that it’s improving with more use, and he’s working on understanding when to use it alongside his four-seam fastball.

The 30-year-old finished 2024 with a 3.97 ERA in 49 games, spanning 56 ⅔ innings, showing flashes of dominance but also struggling after the All-Star break and in September. His ERA spiked from 2.58 to 3.97 by the season’s end, which he found frustrating, but he used that experience as motivation during the offseason. Kelly is pleased with his season overall, especially staying healthy after undergoing elbow surgery in 2023.

Command issues were a key factor in his struggles, as he averaged 4.3 walks per nine innings. He aims to improve in this area in 2025. Despite these challenges, Kelly’s velocity improved late in the season, reaching 99 mph, though his command faltered in September.

Kelly no longer plays MLB The Show much, as being a dad and late nights after games limit his time for video games. However, he discovered his in-game character throwing a two-seam fastball and decided to bring it back into his real-life pitching repertoire. The two-seamer was his primary pitch in high school, college, and early in his minor league career, before he shifted to a four-seam fastball.

In addition to the two-seam, Kelly now throws five pitches: a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, sweeper, cutter, and changeup. He believes the two-seam will help him steal strikes, particularly against right-handed hitters, and help him utilize the inside part of the plate more effectively, which he felt was lacking in his pitch mix last year.